About
Healthcare is a big, complex industry with a simple definition: people in this field work to help people get healthy…and stay that way. If you have a passion for science, find technology fascinating, or just want to help people, a career in Healthcare could be extremely rewarding.
Doctors and nurses are some of the best-known Healthcare professionals, but there are lots of other interesting careers that offer good salaries and rewarding work.
Administrators, physician assistants, speech therapists, and many more job titles belong to the Healthcare industry. We’ve created a ranking of the Best Online Medical Sonography Schools to help get you started.
These professionals may work in hospitals, patients’ homes, the military, nonprofits, or in education. Take a look at our homepage on Healthcare to learn more.
Fields of Study in Healthcare
Healthcare is a rapidly growing field, and the list of possible job titles and degrees in the industry would be virtually endless. So, we’ve put together some of the main areas of study in the Healthcare industry, but keep in mind: these are just the tip of the iceberg!
Clinical Healthcare
These are the doctors, nurses, and assistants who work with patients to diagnose and treat health issues, and often provide preventative care to help patients maintain good health. A few examples of clinical specializations include:
- Cardiology
- Dentistry
- Emergency medicine
- Gerontology
- Pediatrics
- Psychiatry
- Radiology
Therapy and Rehabilitation
These services help patients recover their independence after an injury, illness, or surgery. Some main areas of focus could be:
- Pain management
- Occupational therapy
- Physical therapy
- Speech therapy
Healthcare Administration
If you want to help people and have a knack for leadership, Healthcare administration could be a great career choice. According to the Healthcare Leadership Alliance, there are five main areas of expertise in this field:
- Hospital administration
- Medical practice administration
- Nursing administration
- Healthcare financial management
- Healthcare information management
Public Health
While careers in clinical Healthcare treat individual patients, public health professionals focus on groups. Most jobs in this field require at least a master’s degree, and you’ll study the role of society in a community’s quality of life and overall health. There are five traditional core disciplines that you’ll study in a public health master’s degree program:
- Biostatistics
- Environmental Health Sciences
- Epidemiology
- Health Policy and Management
- Social and Behavioral Sciences
Benefits of a Career in Healthcare
The most obvious reason to choose a career in Healthcare is the potential to earn a huge salary. The United States Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reports that the highest-paid healthcare professionals are among the highest paid professionals in all fields.
The BLS also projects that the demand for Healthcare workers of all kinds will increase rapidly between now and 2026. That means that in addition to great compensation, most jobs in the Healthcare industry also offer great job security.
But what might be even more important to you is job satisfaction. While some Healthcare workers have a reputation for being stressed out (hello, surgeons!), that stress is often balanced out by the fact that they are doing something they love. And other Healthcare workers, like physician assistants and physical therapists, report high levels of job satisfaction and excellent work-life balance.
Healthcare and Technology
Advances in technology have a big impact on the way Healthcare professionals work. Right now, telemedicine is helping patients in remote areas to access care. Artificial intelligence is improving documentation and streamlining scheduling. And mobile technology is giving patients the chance to manage their health on the go.
Whether you choose a career that requires an associate degree or a doctoral degree, a career in Healthcare guarantees that you’ll never stop learning.