Nationwide — Healthcare is an institution that lends itself to those who enjoy caring for others and giving their personal time to those who are in need. If you are currently stuck in a nine-to-five that isn’t particularly fulfilling, and want to put your best intentions into a real career, then you may want to retrain in a nursing position.
Fulfillment
If you need passion to get you out of the front door in the morning, then healthcare could be the perfect industry. It has high satisfaction levels, and it’s no surprise as to why. This industry does have high salaries, but it is driven by individuals who care profoundly about their patients’ welfare. Most healthcare professionals would not be in their line of work, were it not for caring profoundly about what they do.
No need to go back to school
Well, you will need to retrain. It should be rephrased as: no need to go back to a place of full-time, formal education. If you are not already medically trained, you will need to get the appropriate qualifications.
However, you can use online courses to train up as a nurse practitioner, which means you can fit it around your everyday life. You can find online FNP programs, for example, which would be ideal for someone who wants to change careers but not sacrifice their current one.
High demand
Healthcare is an industry that isn’t going to fold as a result of limited demand anytime soon. In fact, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics predicted that it will in fact grow by 18% as a sector, which equates to around 2.4 million work places. This is ideal for anyone who wants to shift to an industry where they will almost certainly be guaranteed job stability in the future.
The reason this industry is also growing and expanding in terms of vacancies is the need for experts in developmental modern medicine. As new medicines are developed alongside modern machines, hospitals and practices will inevitably be in need of trained technicians, lab assistants and pharmacologists.
Stability
High demand also comes with an extra benefit, that being stability. If you are looking to join a sector where you can almost guarantee you will have regular hours and job stability, it’s medicine and healthcare. There are many job sectors whereby the threat of redundancy can be very real, but in this industry, staff are usually in such demand, that you can put a generous amount of faith in the reliability of your job always being a vital role.
Achievement has a diverse meaning
In some professions, ‘achievement’ refers to the size of the commission you take home that day, or the amount of money you make in a year. The notion of fulfilling something in medicine and healthcare is incredibly wide. The benefits and improvements you make to people’s lives will often be visible to see, which means that rewards may take you by surprise.
The relief on someone’s face when you give them a positive diagnosis, or the happiness that comes with a more pleasant quality of life may far outreach any bonus or financial incentive you might have earned in another line of work.
Giving back to the community
For some people, community work is just as important as giving to charity and providing for your family. Some local organizations and bodies are the lifeblood of local villages and neighborhoods, which means that many citizens want to give back as much as possible throughout their working life.
Working in healthcare is a way of giving back to your community that extends beyond just financial donations. Being able to work with elderly citizens and those who need ongoing care is one of the best ways to show your community that you truly want to give back to them. The appreciation you get back from patients will be evidence enough that your assistance and knowledge has truly improved their quality of life.
Variety
Healthcare is just about one of the most diverse job arenas you could go into, and for a number of reasons. For example, if you wanted to become a nurse, you could work in public health, for a hospital, in a nursing home, or at a teaching body.
On top of this, you will also get to enjoy true variation within your actual job. No one day is likely to be the same as another, as you will be working with patients as and when they need help. It will also expose you to a wide range of demographics and people from a variety of backgrounds, which in itself can make your job incredibly fulfilling.
Progression
Many people go into corporate jobs, only to be disappointed by the sheer lack of potential to progress. In healthcare, it is always possible to progress, whether you side-step into a slightly different arena of healthcare, or just progress through your own line of work. As many people will know, there are different levels of qualification and seniority for nurses. On top of that, you will climb the ranks in your profession if you decide to specialize, as this will open up even more doors for you in your medical career.
The world is on your doorstep
If you decide to go into a part of the healthcare industry that requires you to be medically qualified, this will open you up to a unique benefit, you are likely to be qualified in not just many states, but across the globe. You may have job opportunities in countries where you share a common language, or indeed, where you speak their language.
Being a qualified doctor or nurse in a pretty universal profession. Everyone gets sick, comes to harm or experiences difficulties in later in life, it doesn’t matter what part of the world you live in.
Third world relief
As mentioned, becoming medically qualified can open you up to exciting job opportunities across the globe. One area to consider, particularly if you have an inclination to help those who are most in need, is third world relief. Providing emergency relief will be an incredibly emotionally and often physically demanding job, but it could be the perfect avenue to take for someone who truly wants to make the world a better place.
Third world relief will open your skills out to a much broader use of medical training. You may find yourself running a clinic or providing education to others.
In this role you should expect to:
• Work in a very challenging environment from time to time.
• Be away from home for months maybe even years at a time.
• Need postgraduate medical training.
If this seems intimidating at first, then try not to panic. There are many organizations that are dedicated to international aid, which can help you to get all the absolute essentials before traveling. You may need special training before you leave, in order to prepare you for the environment you’re going to work in, and you will also need flights, places to stay and insurance. It is far better to go with an experienced aid relief body, as they can provide you with expertise and advice.
Stable and high salaries
One aspect of working in healthcare that many are too prudish to discuss is the potential to earn high salaries. This should be expected, however, as for a highly-specialized job, you should expect to see a salary that reflects that.
The more qualified and experienced you become, the more room there will be for progression. Studying for a niche area of medicine can also see you venture into the territory of becoming a qualified specialist, which also comes with plenty of financial rewards.
Flexibility
Because healthcare often operates to a shift-based work pattern, you can expect a surprising amount of flexibility in your line of work. For example, if you needed to attend an event, or be off for an afternoon, a way of getting this time off would be to get someone to cover your shift for you. Ultimately, you are likely to be working in a 24/7 environment. This means that people are needed to be working at all hours of the day and night, which gives you much more time to play with.
There are countless benefits to working in healthcare: whether it’s the high salaries, the diverse nature of your daily work life or the potential to travel the globe.
It is a line of work that requires a bit of selflessness, and the payoffs can be so subtle that it’s hardly worth comparing them to financial gains. So, if you want to work in an industry where you have tangible change upon people’s lives and where no one day is the same, then working in healthcare could be for you.
