Optician

Optician

Duties and Responsibilities: An optician is a doctor that specializes in being able to dispense optical aids like glasses for example. Normally, these opticians will work for big optician stores or in independent facilities. They are responsible for the interpreting of prescriptions given by optometrists or ophthalmologists. They also help the patient in determining what type of glasses would be better for them by taking into consideration the frame, lens, and styling. They will also take facial measurements to make sure that the glasses will fit properly and in the correct position.

Salary: $20,000-$30,000

Education: There aren’t really any specific educational requirements, having an associate’s or bachelor’s degree in any optic field can be a huge advantage.

Reflection: I would probably not like to be an optician because I would much rather work as an optometrist rather than just helping people find the right measurements of their glasses although that is actually really important.]

Nursing Home Administrator

Nursing Home Administrator

Duties and Responsibilities: Nursing home administrators are the people who are in charge of supervising different nursing homes. They are responsible for making sure that their staff is following the rules and working properly. They might also need to check other things like the financial standing of the facility. They will also tend to make sure that all the medical supplies needed are present in the nursing home and also ready to use.

Salary: $88,580

Education: In order to become a nursing home administrator you must obtain a four-year’s bachelor’s degree and also pass the state licensing exam. Another requirement might be skills in both the health care and business fields, communication skills, and being able to absorb rather large amounts of information.

Reflection: I would probably enjoy this career as there is the business administration field in this. The being able to run the facility in order to guarantee that the patients will be properly taken care of is quite enticing. 

Wellness Professional

Wellness Professional

Duties and Responsibilities: The practitioners are usually those individuals whom are required to be able to create fitness and wellness programs for either an organization or health facility.  They must make sure that the program does not exceed the budget and they need to purchase the  supplies and equipment necessary to continue the project.

Salary: $35,000-$56,000

Education: They are required to have completed high school. They might also be required to have some sort of a degree in fitness.

Reflection: I would not necessarily enjoy the job although it is quite interesting. I believe that I would not really fit into a career where fitness was the specialization. 

Medical Surveillance Technician

Medical Surveillance Technician

Duties and Responsibilities: Medical technicians are to find and help detect and eliminate any dangers to people that can affect the everyone’s health including drugs and dangerous chemicals. They can therefore work at different locations like office buildings, clinics, hospitals and many more. Their job mostly consists of moving around to different locations.

Salary: $32,000- $40,000

Education: They are required to have received their high school diploma or GED and also have to complete training. They might also need to study about the different ways drugs affect our bodies.

Reflection: I would not like to be a practitioner as there is a lot of danger in being around so many harmful chemicals while trying to figure out how harmful they are.

Mental Health Specialist

Mental Health Specialist

Duties and Responsibilities: The mental health specialists are extremely vital in the army or any form of the military field. The specialists help soldiers while enlisted in order to help relieve some of the emotional stress caused by the violence that they are surrounded by. Normally the practitioners will collect information about the patient when it comes to their psychological data. They will also counsel their patients with personal or behavioral problems.

Salary: they will be compensated with housing, food, special pay, and even vacation time.

Education: they will be required to have 10 weeks of combat training and 20 weeks of advanced individual training which includes patient care.

Reflection: I would not like to have this career because I believe that the people who are in the army or other military services need to be not just physically strong but incredibly mentally strong people. I would for one not fall under that category as I am a very sensitive person. 

Medical Illustrator

Medical Illustrator

Duties and Responsibilities: Medical illustrators are responsible for the creating a form of medical visuals in order to allow the patient’s to have a clear understanding of a medical disorder. They must create the mentioned specifically for the patient in a way that needs to be both informative but quite simple as well. With the help of art and few words the visual is able to come to life therefore serving its function. Medical illustrators may work in various places where their informational work may be needed.

Salary: Salary may range from $62,000-$100,000 on average per year.

Education: in order to be a practitioner one must complete the following courses; human gross anatomy, physiology, pathology, histology, neuroanatomy, embryology, and surgery. They must also have some form of raining before being certified. They will also need to have acquired photography skills as well as drawing skills.

Reflection: I would probably not even consider this as an option for me because of the fact that the need to be able to draw and create perfectly clear visuals all which I believe I would not be able to do.

Medical Assistant

Medical Assistant

Duties and Responsibilities: practitioners usually assist patients by providing them with information and medical services. They might have to prepare a patient for the medical examinations required. They can also be the people whom are to record the weight, blood pressure, and the patient’s temperature in order to maintain the person’s medical record up to date.

Salary: The salary median is $13.41

Education: practitioners are required to have on-the-job training as well as a high school diploma or GED. They can also receive training in programs that some universities provide.

Reflection: I would not really want to become a medical assistant as that career pathway does not really interest me. Working in the medical field I would rather be a doctor rather than an assistant.

Licensed Practical Nurse

Licensed Practical Nurse

Job Description: Licensed Practical Nurses are also known as (LPNs), work in many facilities. They might work at care facilities, hospitals, physicians’ offices and people’s private homes as well. They are responsible for monitoring a patient’s health. The nurses are usually to care for injuries and severe illness.

Salary: $50,000

Education: in order to become one of these nurses the person must have a degree in medical care. They must also be approved by the state educational program they take.

Reflection: I would really like to be a practitioner of this career as they seem to only be devoting their time to one patient.

Oncologist

Oncologist

Duties and Responsibilities: Oncologists specialize in the treatment and diagnosing of cancer in patients’ bodies. They will normally look towards chemotherapy and other medicine to control the growth of the patient’s cancer and hopefully even stop it completely. Before being able to treat the illness they must be able to determine if the person is really a cancer patient.

Salary: $217,856

Education: Specialists must go through up to eight years of undergraduate medical school. They must also go through training and pass a licensing exam in order to perform their specialty. 

Reflection: I would like to become an oncologist because cancer is such a common disease that affects so many people and I would like to do all I can to possibly stop it.

Health Educator

Health Educator

Duties and Responsibilities: The educators normally teach people how to better their health habits and attitude towards healthy things. They might also work on strategies in order to improve the health not only individual people but entire communities as well.

Salary: $35,000-$50,000

Education: They need a bachelor’s degree. They should also become have the credential that they need in order to practice their career. They must get the credential from the Certified Health Education Specialist (CHES). They are also required to have on-the-job training.

Reflection: I would really enjoy being a practitioner because I would really like working with communities. I would especially want to be a health educator to work with Hispanic communities.

Health Information Specialist

Health Information Specialist

Duties and Responsibilities: These specialists usually work in either hospitals or for government agencies. They are responsible for taking care of the patients’ personal information as well as making sure that their health records are a hundred percent accurate.

Salary: $40,000

Education: The specialists need to be familiar with medical vocabulary no matter what. They might also be required to obtain an associate’s degree in health management. Just like in any other medical career they need to be certified.

Reflection: I would like to become a health information specialist because I am not really interested in having to deal with blood and I believe that this is a very good medical pathway. 

Western Medicine Doctor

Western Medicine Doctor

Duties and Responsibilities: These doctors specialize in treatment with medications. It is different from the Eastern medicine because unlike the other who treats people with ancient herbal remedies, the western medicine practitioners stick to a treatment with industrialized medicines.

Salary: $187,200 annually

Education: They are required to have a degree in medicine. They also need to be certified before being able to actually perform their career.

Reflection: I wouldn't like to become a western medicine doctor because I believe in natural remedies.

Eastern Medicine Doctor

Eastern Medicine Doctor

Duties and Responsibilities:  The practitioners rely on ancient Chinese medicine to help treat their patients. Doctors use different types of herbal medicines in order to ensure the well-being of those who come to them asking for help.

Salary: $55,000-$60,000

Education: They need a degree in medicine which can be obtained in any medical school. They may also be required to take a course on herbal studies.

Reflection: I would like to become an Eastern medicine doctor because I strongly believe in the curative properties of herbs and ancient medicines.

Electrocardiograph Technician

Electrocardiograph Technician

Duties and Responsibilities: The practitioners normally work at hospitals or clinics but are also found in cardiologists office’s.  They work with patient’s that suffer from heart disease. They help patients and doctors by taking care of attaching certain electrodes to the patient’s body in order to have readings of their hearts function.

Salary: $25,000-$45,000

Education: In order to practice this people are required to have a certificate in EKG technology and a high school diploma as well as training.

Reflection: I would like to become a technician because this career is very fascinating and hands-on which is something that I would really like to experience. 

Dermatologists

Dermatologists

Duties and Responsibilities: Dermatologists are doctors who specialize and treat skin related diseases and can sometimes even treat problems having to do with hair and nails. When people have serious skin problems like Eczema or even less dramatic problems like acne, dermatologists are the people to go to.

Salary: $300,000 a year.

Education: Dermatologists are required to obtain a degree in skincare as well as a license to practice it. Some practitioners even go as far as obtaining a more specific degree in other branches of dermatology.

Reflection: I would really enjoy being a dermatologist as I thoroughly enjoy being able to help people with their skin problems as the skin is one of the most critical things that can affect a person’s self-esteem for better or for worse because of being the most obvious and exposed part of a human being.

Dental Assistant

                     Dental Assistant

Duties and Responsibilities: Dental assistants work with doctors in order to insure that patients get the proper care they need. They also assist doctors during examinations and their procedures as well as in getting x-rays for the doctor. Another obligation they have is to sterilize every object within the office like chairs for example. Dental assistants also help the patients feel more ease during the consultation.

Salary: $40,000-$50,000

Education: To become an assistant you need a couple of years of training, as well as accreditation from the CODA. Another requirement is to become certified by the CDA

Reflection: I would really enjoy becoming a dental assistant as I have had  experience interacting with them and i’ve come to realize the immense happiness that you feel when they are with you to make you feel better.

Dental Lab Technician

                      Dental Lab Technician

Duties and responsibilities: Dental lab technicians basically are in charge of maintaining patient’s oral health by creating and fabricating things to improve their health like prosthetic teeth in dentists request for each patient.

Salary: $40,000

Education: To be able to become a technician you need to have an associate degree in dental technology. After receiving their degree they are required to be accredited as well as certified by the national board of dental technology.

Reflection: Although this career does seem very interesting I do not think that I would like to become a technician as the amount of pay is very low and I have never really been interested in the dental pathway.

Counseling/Psychotherapy

                                               Counseling/Psychotherapy


Duties and Responsibilities: It is a general practice in which the way people function is stressed. It addresses the emotional, social, physical, work, and school health of the patient. People are helped  in order to alleviate stress,and improve well-being.

Salary:$60,000-$100,000

Education: The educational requirements of becoming a practitioner are most importantly to receive a degree in psychiatry and to gain experience as well as to become licensed in the field.

Reflection: I would like to become a practitioner because I like to listen to people talking to me about their problems and I really enjoy being able to give advice that is there for the taking and resolvment of people's issues.

Yoga Therapist

                                                       Yoga Therapist

Duties and Responsibilities: Yoga therapists are to teach people the art of relaxation by creating different "poses" which stimulate the body and help it function properly. Another benefit of the yoga practicing is to help maintain a healthy mind as well as body.

Salary:$45,000 a year

Education: In order to become a yoga therapist several degrees are required. Yoga philosophy, yoga therapy, anatomy, and physiology. Understanding the human anatomy is a big part in being able to teach people yoga.

Reflection: I would not want to become a yoga therapist because I would prefer to follow another path in the medicinal careers. Although I would not want to become a therapist I would like to practice it.

Chinese (oriental) Medicine

                                              Chinese (oriental) Medicine

Duties and Responsibilities: Chinese (oriental) medicine is an ancient type of medicine used in China and other parts of Asia for many years now. The medicine consists of using different types of herbs for medicinal purposes as well as the practice of acupuncture and tai chi to help and prevent health problems. The medicine has been so effective that people have been using it either as a main form of curation or a different approach for over 2,500 years all over the world.

Salary: $50,000-$100,000 a year

Education:  To become an oriental medicine practitioner you first need a bachelor's degree in biology, chemistry, or biochemistry. Another requirement is for a training in acupuncture to be obtained.

Reflection: I would probably want to become a practitioner of oriental medicine because it really interests me. Another reason for my interest would probably be that I  am a huge believer in natural herbs from the earth and their healing powers above some modern medicines. Understanding how the body functions is relevant in this career and that is something that has always caught my attention.