Choosing a path to take as a new uni student can be an overwhelming experience. There are several factors to think about, including the amount of money you will make, the amount of time it will take to achieve your degree, and how much you will enjoy the associated career. An important thing to consider is a career that could affect not only yourself but also the world around.
The field of health care is one of the best in terms of earnings and job stability. And here’s why:
1. Demand
As long as there are humans, there will be a need for health care. This demand is reflected in the increasing numbers of students in healthcare related degree programs. It can also be seen in the ever growing number of healthcare facilities in the country. The human body is a complex mechanism, and whether you’re dealing with a sore tooth or an advanced case of cancer, you need the advice and opinion of an expert.
By obtaining a health care degree, you’ll be part of the relatively select group of professionals who are qualified to handle those cases. For some, this might not seem like a good thing, as it does put quite a lot of responsibility on your shoulders. It also opens the door on the opportunity to help people in one of the most literal and meaningful ways possible.
2. Innovation
Medical technology now is radically different from how it was one hundred years ago. It’s even radically different from how it was ten years ago. With the accelerated rate of technological advancements comes great improvements in overall medical care. With advances in disciplines such as radiology, we now are able to study and understand the human body like never before.
This innovation means that students in the medical field are constantly learning things that will improve on the world of healthcare as a whole. Part of getting the degree is also the opportunity to be a part of those innovations. Part of your degree will be research that could one day lead to a medical breakthrough of your own. If you want to be part of a life and world-changing field, get a health care degree.
3. Change how we see the world
As a health care professional, you will deal with all sorts of patients with all sorts of cases. While most of your cases will be fairly standard, there will be one occasionally that may require further analysis. For instance, you may be a child psychiatrist dealing with a special patient who radically changes preconceived notions you and medical professionals all over the world once had.
This typically goes hand-in-hand with the research and innovations that were mentioned above. There was a time in human history when doctors prescribed herbs as medications based on their physical similarities to the afflicted part of the human body. Examples of this include lungwort, a plant that bears a similarity to diseased human lungs and was thought to cure tuberculosis. Medical research has since dramatically changed our understanding of medicine, and you could be a part of that.
4. Lifesaving
Being a health care professional is not easy. The mental, emotional, and physical pressures can be overwhelming. You cannot be expected to cure everyone, but if you’re dedicated, you can go to sleep knowing you did the best anyone could.
The pressure will be worth it at the moment when you save someone’s life or help someone with a disability or social issue to reach their fullest potential. When that happens, the joy you feel will be immense and will serve as a reminder of why those in health care are so widely respected. A healthcare degree might not be for everyone. For anyone who wants to make a real difference in the world, however, it is definitely a career path worth considering.
Healthcare requires almost absolute devotion from those who are involved in it. If you’re still deciding what career path to choose, it is certainly worth your time to seriously consider pursuing a career in healthcare. As was said above, it isn’t the right path for everyone. If you don’t think you would be able to survive all the additional years of schooling, or that the stresses of working in the healthcare field would be too much for you, you should probably pick a different career.
If you feel up to the challenge though, then this could be your opportunity to really make a difference.
Special thanks to Kara Masterson for providing us with this article. Kare is a freelance writer from West Jordan, Utah. She graduated from the University of Utah and enjoys writing and spending time with her dog, Max.
