1. Chapter 03
Careers in Health Care

2. 3:1 Introduction to Health Care Careers
Education
Requirements vary by program and state
Health science education (HSE)
Post-secondary education
National Consortium for Health Science Education (NCHSE)

3. Certification, Registration, and Licensure
Methods to ensure skill and competency of personnel and protect consumers/patients
Certification
Professional association/government agency
Example: certified medical assistant

4. Certification, Registration, and Licensure
Regulatory body
Example: registered dietitian
Licensure
Government agency
Defines scope of practice
Examples: dentist, physician
“Dietician” changed to “dietitian”

5. Accreditation Ensures program of study meets competency standards
Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs (CAAHEP)
Accrediting Bureau of Health Education Schools (ABHES)

6. Continuing Education Units (CEUs)
Required to renew license or maintain certification or registration in many states
Requirements vary between careers
Students must know requirements in their state

7. Professional Organizations
Member benefits
Professional development
Career information
Influence legislation
Help with certification, registration, licensure
Financial support
Code of ethics

8. Education Levels, Trends, and Opportunities
Training levels (refer to Table 3-1 in text)
Professional
Technologist or therapist
Technician
Aide or assistant
“Text” changed to “text”

9. Education Levels, Trends, and Opportunities
Multicompetent or multiskilled workers
New trend in health occupations
Workers perform a variety of health care skills
Eliminates need to employ specialists for every aspect of care
Educational programs for multicompetent workers

10. Education Levels, Trends, and Opportunities
Entrepreneur
Organizes/manages business and assumes its risks
Education programs combining business skills and career objectives
Examples: nurse practitioners, respiratory therapists, physicians, chiropractors

11. National Health Care Standards
Developed to indicate knowledge and skills expected of health care workers
Healthcare Foundation Standards
Therapeutic Services Standards
Diagnostic Services Standards

12. National Health Care Standards
Health Informatics Standards
Support Services Standards
Biotechnology Research and Development Standards

13. Introduction to Health Care Careers
Educational requirements vary
On-the-job training
HSE program
Associate’s degree
Bachelor’s degree
Master’s degree
Doctoral degree

14. 3:2 Therapeutic Services Careers
Directed to changing patients’ health status over time
Use variety of treatments to help patients who are injured, physically or mentally disabled, or emotionally disturbed
Treatment to allow patients to function at maximum capacity

15. 3:2 Therapeutic Services Careers
Places of employment
Rehabilitation facilities
Hospitals
Mental health facilities
Day care or long-term care facilities
Home health agencies
Schools
Changed “Daycare” to “Day care”

16. 3:2A Dental Careers Basic job duties
Health of teeth and soft tissues of mouth
Preventing dental disease
Repairing or replacing diseased or damaged teeth
Treating gingiva (gums) and other supporting structures of the teeth

17. 3:2A Dental Careers Places of employment Private dental offices
Laboratories
Hospitals
Schools
Health departments

18. 3:2A Dental Careers Dental specialties Endodontics Orthodontics
Oral surgery
Pedodontics
Periodontics
Prosthodontics

19. 3:2A Dental Careers Levels of employment Refer to Table 3-3 in text
Dentist (DMD or DDS)
Dental hygienist (DH)
Dental laboratory technician (DLT)
Dental assistant (DA)
Refer to Table 3-3 in text

20. 3:2B Emergency Medical Services Careers
Basic job duties
Provide emergency, prehospital care to victims of accidents, injuries, or sudden illness
Emergency medical technician (EMT) training required for most jobs
Refer to Table 3-4 in text
“Text” changed to “text”

21. 3:2B Emergency Medical Services Careers
Emergency medical technician paramedic (EMT-P, EMT-4)
Emergency medical technician intermediate (EMT-1, EMT-2, EMT-3)
Emergency medical technician basic (EMT-B, EMT-1)
First responder

22. 3:2C Medical Careers Refer to Table 3-5 in text
Physician (doctor): MD, DO, DPM, DC
Physician assistant: PA, PAC
Medical assistant: MA, CMA, RMA
For a list of medical specialties, refer to Table 3-6 in text
“Text” changed to “text”

23. 3:2D Mental Health Services and Social Services Careers
Help those with mental or emotional disorders or who are developmentally delayed or mentally impaired
Social workers help others deal with illness, employment problems, or community issues
Help individuals function at their maximum capacity

24. 3:2D Mental Health Services and Social Services Careers
Levels of employment
Psychiatrist
Psychologist
Psychiatric/mental health technicians
Social worker (SW)
Genetic counselor
Refer to Table 3-7 in text

25. 3:2E Mortuary Careers Basic job duties Preparation of the body
Perform ceremony that honors the deceased and meets the spiritual needs of the living
Cremation or burial of the remains
Practices and rites vary based on cultural and religious preferences

26. 3:2E Mortuary Careers Places of employment Funeral homes Mortuaries
Crematoriums
Cemetery associations

27. 3:2E Mortuary Careers Levels of employment Refer to Table 3-8 in text
Funeral director
Embalmer
Mortuary assistant
Refer to Table 3-8 in text

28. 3:2F Nursing Careers Basic job duties
Provide care under direction of a physician
Focus on patients’ mental, emotional, and physical needs

29. 3:2F Nursing Careers Places of employment Hospitals
Long-term care facilities
Physicians’ offices
Clinics
Health maintenance organizations (HMOs)
Schools

30. 3:2F Nursing Careers Levels of employment Refer to Table 3-9 in text
Registered nurse (RN)
Licensed practical/vocational nurse (LPN/LVN)
Nurse assistant
Patient care technician (PCT)
Geriatric aide/assistant
Refer to Table 3-9 in text

31. 3:2G Nutrition and Dietary Services Careers
Basic job duties
Use knowledge of nutrition to promote wellness and optimum health
Provide dietary guidelines to treat disease
Teach proper nutrition
Prepare foods for health care facilities

32. 3:2G Nutrition and Dietary Services Careers
Places of employment
Hospitals
Long-term care and day care facilities
Wellness centers
Clinics
Schools
“daycare” changed to “day care”

33. 3:2G Nutrition and Dietary Services Careers
Levels of employment
Dietitian (RD)
Dietetic technician (DT)
Dietetic assistant or food service worker
Refer to Table 3-10 in text
“Dietician” changed to “dietitian”

34. 3:2H Veterinary Careers
Provide care to all types of animals, from house pets to livestock to wildlife
Places of employment
Animal hospitals
Zoos
Farms
Aquariums

35. 3:2H Veterinary Careers Levels of employment
Veterinarian (DVM or VMD)
Veterinary technologist/technician (VT)
Veterinary assistant or animal caretaker
Refer to Table 3-11 in text

36. 3:2I Vision Services Careers
Basic job duties
Provide care to prevent vision disorders
Treat vision disorders

37. 3:2I Vision Services Careers
Places of employment
Offices
Optical shops
Hospitals
Schools
Health maintenance organizations (HMOs)
Clinics

38. 3:2I Vision Services Careers
Levels of employment
Ophthalmologist (MD)
Optometrist (OD)
Ophthalmic medical technologist (OMT)
Ophthalmic technician (OT)

39. 3:2I Vision Services Careers
Levels of employment
Ophthalmic assistant (OA)
Optician
Ophthalmic laboratory technician
Refer to Table 3-12 in text

40. 3:2J Other Therapeutic Services Careers
Refer to Table 3-13 in text
Occupational therapist (OT/OTR)
Occupational therapy assistant (OTA/COTA)
Pharmacist (PharmD)
Pharmacy technician

41. 3:2J Other Therapeutic Services Careers
Physical therapist (PT)
Physical therapist assistant (PTA)
Massage therapist
Recreational therapist (TR)
Recreational therapy assistant

42. 3:2J Other Therapeutic Services Careers
Respiratory therapist (RT)
Respiratory therapy technician (RTT)
Surgical technologist/technician
Speech-language therapist/pathologist

43. 3:2J Other Therapeutic Services Careers
Audiologist
Art, music, dance therapist
Athletic trainer certified (ATC)
Dialysis technician
Perfusionist

44. 3:3 Diagnostic Services Careers
Basic job duties
Create a picture of a patient’s health status at a single point in time
Perform tests and evaluations to aid in detection, diagnosis, and treatment of disease, injury, or physical condition

45. 3:3 Diagnostic Services Careers
Places of employment
Hospital or private laboratories
Outpatient centers
Physicians’ offices
Clinics
Pharmaceutical companies
Research agencies

46. 3:3 Diagnostic Services Careers
Levels of employment
Electrocardiograph (ECG) technician
Cardiovascular technologist
Electroencephalographic (EEG) technologist
Electroneurodiagnostic (END) technologist
Transposed position of (END) and technologist

47. 3:3 Diagnostic Services Careers
Levels of employment
Medical laboratory technologist (MT) or clinical laboratory scientist (CLS)
Medical laboratory technician (MLT) or clinical laboratory technician (CLT)

48. 3:3 Diagnostic Services Careers
Levels of employment
Medical (clinical) laboratory assistant
Phlebotomist
Radiologic technologist (RT)
Refer to Table 3-14 in text

49. 3:4 Health Informatics Careers
Basic job duties
Documentation of patient records
Maintaining security
Utilizing electronic health record (EHR) software
Analyzing information
Creating networks for health information

50. 3:4 Health Informatics Careers
Places of employment
Hospitals and clinics
Research centers and colleges
Law firms
Health maintenance organizations (HMOs)
Insurance companies
Pls. check spacing above 3.4 heading

51. 3:4 Health Informatics Careers
Levels of employment
Health information (medical records) administrator (HIA)
Health information (medical records) technician (HIT)
Medical coder
Medical transcriptionist

52. 3:4 Health Informatics Careers
Levels of employment
Admitting officer/clerk
Medical administrative assistant
Medical secretary or health unit coordinator
Epidemiologist

53. 3:4 Health Informatics Careers
Levels of employment
Medical interpreter/translator
Medical illustrator
Medical librarian
Refer to Table 3-15 in text

54. 3:5 Support Services Careers
Basic job description
Create therapeutic environment
Operate support departments in health care facilities
Each department has workers at all levels and with varying amounts of education

55. 3:5 Support Services Careers
Places of employment
Hospitals
Clinics
Long-term care facilities
HMOs
Public health or government agencies

56. 3:5 Support Services Careers
Levels of employment
Health care administrator
Biomedical (clinical) engineer
Biomedical equipment technician (BET)
Central/sterile service/supply technician
Housekeeping worker/sanitary manager
Refer to Table 3-16 in text

57. 3:6 Biotechnology Research and Development Careers
Basic job description
Use living cells to create useful products
Use research and development to produce
Diagnostic tests
Forms of treatment
Vaccines
Food products

58. 3:6 Biotechnology Research and Development Careers
Places of employment
Pharmaceutical and chemical companies
Agricultural facilities
Research laboratories
Colleges and universities
Hospitals
Industrial facilities

59. 3:6 Biotechnology Research and Development Careers
Levels of employment
Biological or medical scientist
Biotechnological engineer (bioengineer)
Biological technician
Process technician
Forensic science technician
Refer to Table 3-17 in text