A job in the field of medicine is one of the most sought after careers. This article provides you all the details regarding the best career paths in this field.
What with the spread of so many diseases and also the need for more medical attention in various fields, several people are now interested in pursuing a career in medicine. Being in this field does not just mean becoming a doctor or a nurse or a dentist. There are several options for those who wish to tread this path; few of the popular ones are described below.
Sports Medicine
More people are turning their focus on the need to treat and prevent sports-related injuries, and help in the improvement of the physical and mental health of a sportsperson. The minimum requirement is that you need to have a college degree in medicine, nursing, sports psychology, exercise science, or physical therapy.
The best role in this field are that of the sports doctors. They have to diagnose and treat the injured sportsperson, and prescribe medication. Sometimes, they even have to perform surgery. They must have a license to practice though.
Another role that you can pursue is that of an athletic trainer. The main responsibilities are to work with the athletic teams and carry out training programs to prevent any kind of injuries to the athletes, and also carry out rehabilitation programs for the injured sportsperson to recover quickly. They work with the sports doctors. They can also set up the diet that the athlete is supposed to follow when they are being treated. The average salary varies from around USD 25,000 to USD 36,000 per annum.
Physical therapists help injured sportspersons to restore their proper bodily functions, and also help prevent any kind of permanent disability or physical pain. Their average salary ranges from around USD 25,000 to USD 46,000 per year.
Here are some more job roles that you can look at.
- Kinesiotherapists
- Exercise Physiologists
- Biomechanists
- Rehabilitation specialists
- Personal trainers
- Sports nutritionists
Veterinary Medicine
Veterinarians are the ones who looks after the animals when they are sick. They deal with various groups of animals and birds, and even livestock. Their main responsibilities are to treat the animals and birds, help them when they are pregnant, educate the owners as to how to look after them, carry out check ups, etc. One can also teach in schools and colleges. You can also carry out research regarding various foods, diseases, and drugs related to animals. For this, you need a degree in veterinary medicine from a recognized university and must have the license to practice. You can expect a salary between USD 30,000 to USD 62,000 per year.
Another job type is that of a veterinary technician or assistants whose main responsibility is to provide assistance to the vets. They have to help in securing the animals, providing them with medicines, shaving them, etc. The salary range of the assistants varies from USD 15,000 to USD 25,000 per annum.
Alternative Medicine
Alternative medicines focus more on the healing power of herbs and other medicinal plants. The various career paths that one can look at are aromatherapy and homeopathy. They work on various health problems by treating the whole person rather than just the affected area. They treat problems ranging from back pain, headaches, to cancer with the help of Ayurveda, hypnosis, Reiki, etc. Many people know and realize its various benefits, and thus, more and more people are taking up this career. Some of the options are:
- Reiki trainer
- Yoga teacher
- Acupuncturist
- Holistic medicine expert
- Homeopath
Nuclear Medicine
One of the best jobs is that of a nuclear medicine technologist. Their main responsibilities are to prepare radioactive pharmaceuticals for treating diseased cells. For this job, you should have gone through a nuclear medicine technology training program which consists of 4 years study, and you also need to complete a one-year certificate course which is offered by hospitals. The salary ranges from around USD 30,000 to USD 40,000 per year. The various job types one can look at are:
- Nuclear Physician
- Chiropractic
- Counselor
- Cytotechnologist
- Epidemiologist
- Genetic Counselor
- Health Educator
- Histologist
- Industrial Hygienist
- Medical Assistant
- Medical Technologist
- Nurse
- Nurse Anesthetist
- Perfusionist
- Physician’s Assistant
- Radiation Therapist
- Radiographer
- Sonographer
- X-Ray Technician