Popular Specialties in Physical Therapy

A physical therapist is a licensed professional who is trained to evaluate injuries. The therapist designs therapeutic exercise routines customized to

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the injury to improve strength, flexibility and coördination so the patient can heal and get back to normal as soon as possible.

If you are considering physical therapy employment, look for a specialty that seems like a good fit for your interests and abilities. Here are some of the best known physical therapy fields of practice:

  • Cardiopulmonary: The therapist helps people who have suffered a heart attack or who have heart disease build up strength in the heart muscle or find ways to cope with their limitations.
  • Geriatric: The therapist works with elderly patients who may have coördination or balance problems so they can stay mobile for as long as possible.
  • Electro-Physiologist: The therapist uses electrodes to deliver mild electric shocks to strategic areas of a patient’s body to interrupt pain signals moving along the nerves.
  • Pediatric: The therapist works with children who have injuries or special problems like spina bifida and cerebral palsy to help them increase their strength, coördination and fine motor skills.
  • Sports: The therapist works with athletes who play sports of all kinds, to repair various injuries to different parts of the body including the back, knee, shoulder and foot.

If you want to go to school to become a physical therapist, you’ll have to earn a Doctor of Physical Therapy degree from an accredited school and pass the National Physical Therapy Exam before you’ll be licensed to practice.

Becoming a physical therapist takes a lot of study and hard work, but it’s a very satisfying job because the therapist is able to see the results as patients’ injuries improve and they’re able to return to a normal life.

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Entry-Level Jobs in the Healthcare Field

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If you’re fresh out of college and eager to start a career in the healthcare field, there are a variety of entry-level jobs that you could pursue without spending years in medical school. These jobs are excellent ways to get your foot in the door to a hospital. You can continue to work in the healthcare field without a medical degree, or you could opt to return to school a few years down the line.

Certified Nursing Assistant

As a certified nursing assistant, you’ll work under registered nurses or licensed practical nurse. You’ll assist them in primary patient care functions, such as bathing, feeding and dressing. One of the most in-demand jobs in the country, by 2016 there is a projected need for 400,000 CNAs.

Medical Billing and Coding

Perfect for individuals with careful attention to detail and excellent organizational skills, medical billers are responsible for collecting, processing and posting accounts receivables. These employees work in physician’s offices, insurance companies, nursing homes and hospitals.

Medical Transcriptionist

Medical transcriptionists assist healthcare professionals by transcribing medical reports, such as operations, chart reviews and ER visits. As a medical transcriptionist, you can expect to gain a great deal of knowledge on hospital and clinic proceedings. Medical transcriptionists can move up in their field and can use their experience to become a medical assistant, medical secretary, or a health information technologist.

Massage Therapist

Massage therapists have the benefit of being able to work in both hospitals and clinics or resorts or spas. Many are able to set their own schedule or prices as well, and they have the opportunity to work with a variety of clients. An increasing number of medical professionals are accepting massages as a necessary alternative medical practice.

 

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The Hospital Jobs That are Non-Medical

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Most people have the wrong impression of the medical field. They believe that the key to being in the medical field is medical training. While you need special training to do a number of the jobs at your local hospital, there are plenty of positions out there that can be great for you to get that don’t require you to have an acute knowledge of medicine.

First, there are plenty of office administrators at a hospital. The departments at a hospital are fast paced and often need a ton of supervision from someone who understands how to schedule things and how to make things happen. You are one of the people that would be in charge of scheduling and making sure that each department is fully stocked and ready for each day. They tend to pay good money and it’s a secure job in most hospitals.

Another thing to consider is working on the accounting side of the hospital. For as serious as the hospital is about treating sick people, it’s just as serious about the business side of what it does. The money must be balanced and well tracked. It’s as confusing as any money situation because there are a number of people who are accountable and you often have to deal with things such as insurance as well as vendors. It can provide a unique challenge even to those who are among the most mathematically gifted.

A hospital job is available for anyone who considers themselves to be great and self-motivated people who love working for a big business. Check your local hospitals for listings.

 

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