Medical Careers

People who choose to go for a medical career want to help people fight their illnesses. But since not everyone is qualified to be a doctor, there are other positions you can fill.

1. Some people have difficulty with their sense of hearing so they go and meet an audiologist. When a patient comes in, they try to find the source of the problem followed by treatment that may include cleaning the air canal, fitting and dispensing hearing aids, fitting and tuning cochlear implants and audiologic rehabilitation.

Those who want to become an audiologist will have to get a master’s degree in Audiology but this will soon change as the requirement will now be clinical doctoral degree. They must also pass the national examination given the Educational Testing Service or ETS; perform 300 to 375 hours of supervised clinical experience and 9 months of post graduate professional clinical experience.

2. Remember those people working in the drug store giving you medicine once you present a prescription? Those people behind the counter are called pharmacists. These individuals must first graduate from an accredited college and pass the state examination.

Having done so, they can already dispense drug and even provide information about their proper usage. In some cases, they advise doctors and other health professionals on the dosages, interactions, selection and side effects of medications.

The job of a pharmacist involves a lot of sacrifice as you have to work on holidays and weekends as drug stores are open 7 days a week and in some places, 24 hours a day. They may also find work in a mental institution, nursing home or neighborhood clinic.

3. Another job that will enable you to work hand in hand with a doctor is by being a dietitian. Their job is to tell a patient what to eat in order to lose weight or simply to promote better eating habits.

Nutritionists also fall under this category. Both individuals must have a bachelor’s degree in dietetics, food and nutrition or food service management systems. The dietitian may start their own practice and network with doctors; find employment in nursing homes, small hospitals or in a correctional facility to manage the food service department.

4. When you go for a medical checkup in a clinic or hospital, the person that will doing the testing is a laboratory technician. These individuals personally examine your body fluids, tissues and cells to see if there are any bacteria, parasites or other microorganisms that pose a danger to the patient.

They use state of the art machines like electronic microscopes, cell counters and other gadgets making their work less hands on and more analytical. If you want to pursue a medical career in this field, you must have a bachelor’s degree in medical technology. You will report to a clinical technologist or a laboratory manager.

There are other medical careers you can pursue aside from the four mentioned. You should do some research first if this is really something you want to do, go to school and then fulfill that dream. If at some point you want to shift somewhere else, go ahead and do so because there are other things you can do.

You can take on another job still in the medical field like assisting doctors in medical research.

Medical Careers List

There was a time that there were no fields of specialization being a doctor. This has changed so those of you who don’t qualify as a surgeon may still pursue something once you narrow your choices from a medical careers list. Here are some of them to help you on your way.

1. First up is by working as a medical assistant. You can easily get this job after you complete a 1 or a 2 year program from a vocational technical high school, vocational school or community college.

Most of the time, their job is to perform routine administrative and clinical tasks to keep the offices of the doctor running smoothly. They will not examine, diagnose or treat a patient unless they are told to assist by the attending physician.

They will also fill out medical records and forms, handle correspondence, arrange hospital admission, laboratory services, bookkeeping, maintenance and purchase of new supplies and equipment.

2. Let’s say you know someone who has a back problem and going to the doctor has not produced any positive results. If you become a chiropractor, you may be the answer to their prayers as this specialist may make the problem go away for good.

A chiropractor performs their session holistically without the use of any drugs or surgical treatments. To make their treatment more effective, they will advise the patient to make some changes in their lifestyle such as a change in diet, exercise and sleeping habits.

There are times that the chiropractor will have to make a manual adjustment in the spinal column using water, light massage, electric, heat or ultrasound therapy. To make sure it lasts, they may apply braces, tapes and straps.

3. Another medical career that does not involve surgery is occupational therapy. Their job is basically to improve the conditions of a patient who is suffering from something emotionally, mentally or physically so they may once again live happily.

Treatment will vary depending on the patient. In some cases, physical exercises will be used to increase strength, those who suffer from short term memory will be given flash cards to aid in recall while those who have coordination problems will be given an exercise to improve hand and eye coordination.

The occupational therapist may also design special equipment and then teach the patient how to use it.

4. Something closely related to occupational therapy is physical therapy. The job of the practitioner is basically to help the patient become mobile by encouraging the person to use their own muscles to increase their flexibility and motion before engaging in other exercises that will improve balance, coordination, endurance and strength.

Sometimes, the physical therapist may use electrical stimulation hot packs, cold compresses and ultrasound to relieve the pain and reduce the swelling. If the patient is unable to become mobile anymore after losing a leg, they will be taught how to use assistive and adaptive devices such as crutches, prostheses and wheelchairs.

The 4 careers mentioned are just some of the things you can pursue. Of course, you will have to go to school first and get a degree then practice this for some time before you are able to open your own clinic.

If being a medical assistant, chiropractor, physical and occupational therapist is not for you, do some research and find something you are interested in the medical career list.

Medical Device Careers

Sales agents who work for pharmaceutical companies do not only sell drugs to doctors. They also sell devices such as pacemakers. The best part of being a sales agent is that you don’t need a medical degree to get started. You simply have to know what you are selling and then making that pitch.

The first thing you have to do is apply for that position. That means polishing your resume and emailing or handing this out to potential medical device companies in the need for sales agent. If you have an interview coming up soon, you should do some research about the company and be familiar with their products so that if that if there is anything unclear, you can ask about this when it is your turn to raise questions during the interview.

It is also possible to ask your interviewer to do a SWOT analysis of their company because you will be able to understand what are their strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats.

As for the information about the potential employer, check out the corporate website. Don’t forget to look at articles that have been written by various publications about them.

When the interview is over, ask how it went so you will have the opportunity to know what you need to improve on. This will also give you time to clear up anything that you may have missed earlier because this is the only way to show that even if you don’t get hired, you don’t make the same mistake when you are called by another company for an interview.

If however you are hired, then you should be familiar with the product. Most companies have product training programs which will you give time to learn about this device inside and out. This should also prepare you to answer any questions that potential buyers may have like what makes your product different than that of the competitor.

Those who are able to sell their product will be able to make a lot of money in terms of sales commissions. This is as analysts have seen that the sale of medical devices is a very lucrative career as more machines are released each year.

But the medical device career does not end by just selling the product. If you have the talent and skill of making one or further improving it, you can apply to work as part of the research and development department of the company.

To do this, you have to keep in mind that what you are building must have a high sense of reliability in mind with only a few minor problems during its life span. It should be something that doctors and nurses will be able to use.

This is done by what is known as reliability science which is defined as the probability of a product performing without any glitches. If the odds of it faltering are quite high, then more hospitals will want to buy this machine.

Will you succeed in a career selling or making medical devices? That entirely falls upon you. If you have the skill or want to give it a shot, there is no harm trying. Should things not go your way, maybe you can still be in the medical field selling drugs, doing research or work with doctors by some other means.

Medical Equipment Sales Careers

Hospitals don’t only need beds for their patients. They will also need CT scanners, mammograms, X-ray machines, respirators, MRI’s and a lot more in order to compete with other hospitals. If you think you have what it takes to be successful in this field, perhaps a sales career in medical equipment may be lucrative for you.

The first thing you have to do is to apply to a company as a sales agent. You can go to a manufacturer or work for a company that is an authorized distributor of the medical equipment. After a series of exams and interviews, you will then be trained on these products then it is up you to do the rest.

Some of the clients you will be offering medical equipment to are already regular customers. Since these people may not need new medical equipment every time you pay them a visit, you have to be resourceful and go off looking for new ones.

In both instances, you have to sell to them the features and advantages of the medical equipment. Some questions you should be ready to answer include what makes your product better than that of a competitor. If you are able to answer that, chances are they will buying from you even if what you have may cost a little bit more.

During the course of your sales presentation with a potential buyer, you should learn to sense if they are really interested or not. There are verbal and non verbal signs that will tell you this. The most obvious is asking you when the medical equipment you have presented will be available so you better be sure that the quantity ordered will be delivered on time so this will not be cancelled.

If ever you are not able to close the deal with the client you just met, don’t feel too bad because there are others out there that may be interested. It will be a good idea to recall how well you did and if there were mistakes made, this should be corrected so are able to sell better in the future.

In any case, don’t forget to thank the hospital representative for seeing you and leaving them your calling card and a brochure because it is possible that they may need your medical equipment in the future. You may even try your luck and give them a call later.

If ever they do buy from you, make it a point to see how the medical equipment is doing. Should there be problems, you should be able to fix them so you are able to earn their trust and perhaps additional orders of the same product or something similar in the long term.

Hospitals require medicine as well as medical equipment to help treat patients. If you have a knack selling things, perhaps here is your chance to make some money and at the same time help save lives. So what are you waiting for? Look at the companies that have job vacancies and then send in your application.

If you are good, a promotion will soon come your way and you will no longer be the one going out in the field but encouraging those who are under you to do the same as you did many years ago.