The healthcare industry is one of the few industries that are likely to have workplaces and keep increasing them. In addition, many professions are distinguished by fairly competitive salaries. With the acceleration of technical and technological progress, some professions lose their relevance, and some, on the contrary, appear. However, there is always a large amount of work, and therefore jobs for everyone.
Your Guide for Getting a Career in Healthcare With No Experience
Should I Go Into the Medical Field Without Experience?
Before moving on to work in medicine, you need to understand if you are the right fit for a career in the healthcare industry.
First of all, you need to decide on the motivation. Why do you want to work in this particular industry? Perhaps you are a fan of medical tv-series and find it romantic to meet your love in a hospital. Then, unfortunately, such a career choice will not be the most correct one. Or maybe you have noticed for a long time that you like helping people and looking after them? Then the decision to become a nurse will be more logical.
In any case, before looking for vacancies or training courses, you should understand that almost any work in the medical field is quite resource-intensive. To become a good specialist in any position, you need to invest a huge amount of energy, time, finances and may even sacrifice your usual way of life. Of course, in return, you will receive stability, fairly high wages, and a feeling of happiness from helping people. But even these factors will not be able to help an insufficiently motivated person to succeed in this area.
It is also worth analyzing your existing skills and character traits to choose a specialty. Do you like to communicate with people? Or do you enjoy doing research and writing reports? Or maybe you loved chemistry and experimentation in college? Answers to these and similar questions will help you decide on a profession in healthcare because, in addition to surgeons and nurses, there is still a huge number of in-demand vacancies in the labor market.
How to Get into the Medical Field with No Experience
There is nothing unusual in the fact that many people do not work in the specialty they got at university or college. Therefore, if you suddenly realized that your current job is not suitable for you, and you have always dreamed of work in healthcare, then there is nothing to worry about. Many jobs do not require an internship or even a medical degree. There are even a small number of specialties where you can work with only a high school diploma.
Here are some of the medical jobs without medical school:
- Professions that require a school diploma (medical transcriptionists, pharmacy technicians, or orderlies)
- Professions that require a diploma from a trade or technical college (dental hygienists, phlebotomists)
- Professions that require an associate’s degree from a community or technical college (physical therapy assistants, clinical lab technicians)
- Professions that require a degree from a university (registered nurse)
Of course, in addition to having a diploma, you will need to undergo training or courses to obtain basic knowledge in the chosen field. But naturally, it will take much less time and resources than training in medical school. Having a suitable diploma and work experience, you can already look for, for example, a nurse’s job and go to the point of creating a resume. And the nurse resume sample can be found on specialized sites.
Also, even if you don’t have any experience of working or volunteering at a hospital, you can consider non-clinical vacancies:
- A medical administrative assistant who greets visitors, arranges appointments, and manages insurance and payment information.
- A healthcare administrator who is an in-house specialist and is responsible for the institution’s policies, financial goals, and compliance with all health standards in his institution.
- Patient advocate who helps and advocates for the patient’s interests while in the hospital. Such a specialist can fill gaps in the knowledge of visitors, explain to them their rights and responsibilities, and also inform doctors about the deterioration of the patient’s condition.
- Information technology specialist that maintains the servers, systems, and sites of the hospital. These professionals also protect patient and employee data from cyber attacks, which are now a big threat.
- Human resources manager who deals with hospital personnel. They can hire, fire, train staff, and conduct various team building and training sessions. They are also responsible for allocating the salary budget and creating an enabling environment for the clinical and non-clinical staff.
As we can see, many of these positions do not require medical education, while the necessary knowledge, on the contrary, is available to people with economic and technological education.
Read Also: Biggest Resume Mistakes That Could Cost You the Interview
Tips for Starting a Career in Healthcare Industry
- Get Relevant Experience
Statistics show that a good resume and cover letter gives a candidate clear advantages over others. You can use the professional resume writing service to make sure that your resume will represent you as a great professional in the eyes of a recruiter. Here you will need to indicate, in addition to suitable skills, also relevant work experience. If you do not have it, you will have to get it in a fairly short time. Sign up to volunteer at a local hospital, they always need help. Also, volunteering can just help in choosing a specialty, since, with good motivation and initiative, you can try yourself in different areas.
If you are considering non-clinical vacancies, at least a little related to your current field of activity, then you can get an internship at a healthcare institution, where you can have the necessary experience for a resume and the missing skills.
- Build a Network
Both at the beginning of the journey and afterward, you will need acquaintances in the industry. Therefore, it will be a good idea to meet as many people as possible both through volunteering and internships and online. Join professional groups, mate with various specialists, go to training, and this activity will help you with your job search and career advancement.
- Find a mentor
When starting a career in medicine, it is very important to have a mentor in this field. At first, this specialist will give you hints and guide you on the right path, where you can maximize your potential. You can meet such a person in an educational institution or by volunteering in a hospital, which is why it is so important to take small steps in this direction right now. Do not be afraid if at first, you will perform the simplest functions in a medical institution, because this is the beginning of your formation as an experienced specialist.
