Category: Healthcare

Have You Heard of This Health Care Career? Orthotist and Prosthetist

 

So often we hear students state with confidence that they want to work in health care, yet they are unsure of the specific ways they would like to serve patients.  I would like to introduce you to a health care occupation that might be unfamiliar to you.  Orthotists and prosthetists, also referred to as O & P professionals, design medical support devices and prosthetic limbs.  They also measure and fit patients for these devices. 

O & P professionals must have a Master’s degree in the field.  A list of accredited programs is available on the website for the National Commission on Orthotic and Prosthetic Education.  Common prerequisite courses include biology, chemistry, physics, and psychology.  This is not a comprehensive list, and interested students should consult the websites of the graduate programs they are considering.

More information on this career can be found at the Occupational Outlook Handbook website, including the favorable job growth projection for this occupation, or at OPCareers.org.

Summer Research Internships for Pre-Med Students

You may have heard that getting research experience is beneficial as a prospective medical school applicant.  Summer can be an ideal time for gaining such experience, since pre-med students typically carry rigorous, time-consuming course loads in the regular semesters.  Also, there are many formal summer research programs that exist.  It is not too early to compare your options and identify important application deadlines.  The American Association of Medical Colleges maintains a list of Summer Undergraduate Research Programs on their website, and it is a nice place to begin your exploration.

Announcement: Speaker from Baylor College of Medicine TONIGHT

One of the best things about being part of a prestigious university community is the opportunity to hear experts speak about their work.  The BURST student organization is hosting a guest lecture tonight by Dr. Peter Hotez, founding dean of the National School of Tropical Medicine at Baylor College of Medicine.  The announcement for the lecture indicates that Dr. Hotez is heavily involved in the development of vaccines, and he even developed a vaccine for hookworms.  The lecture will take place in Room B.110 in the Baylor Sciences Building at 6:00 p.m.

Exciting Opportunities for Prehealth Students

It’s an exciting time to be a prehealth student at Baylor.  Our university has long possessed a reputation for outstanding academics, but there are great learning opportunities outside of the classroom, as well.  Read on for two ways to increase your knowledge of health care careers and get an edge on the competition.

Science and Health Living and Learning Center

Mapping Your Way to Success– hosted by the Multicultural Association of Pre-Health Students.  Guest speakers include:

Monday, October 22nd (Chemistry and the Future Physician with Dr. Pennington )

7:00pm-8:00pm

BSB Room D. 110

Tuesday, October 23rd (Physics: Succeeding on Your Path to a Career in Healthcare with Dr. Kinslow)

7:00pm – 8:00pm

BSB Room D. 110

Wednesday, October 24th (Biology and the Premed Student with Dr. Rushing)

7:00pm – 8:00pm

BSB Room A.108

Thursday, October 25th (The 2015 MCAT: What You Should Know with Mr. South, Assistant Dean of Medical Admissions and University of Arkansas College of Medicine)

6:00pm – 7:00pm

BSB Room D.110

Animal-Assisted Therapy

The therapeutic benefits of interaction with animals have been well-documented, and students planning careers in health care, education, or mental health professions might consider if animal-assisted therapy (AAT) is a method of treatment that they would like to explore.  Pet Partners (formerly Delta Society) is the most well-known organization dedicated to training and research in the area of animal-assisted therapy.  Their definition of AAT is below:

AAT is a goal-directed intervention directed and/or delivered by a health/human service professional with specialized expertise, and within the scope of practice of his/her profession. AAT is designed to promote improvement in human physical, social, emotional, and/or cognitive functioning.

Child life specialists, educators, mental health professionals, nurses, physical therapists, physicians, occupational therapists, recreation therapists, speech-language pathologists, and social workers are just some of the professionals who may choose to seek training in the area of AAT.

For more information on training programs in AAT, check out:

Center for Animal Assisted Therapy

Pet Partners

Discover Nursing

Are you one of Baylor’s many students interested in a career in health care?  You may have seen our post on registered nurses.  This post is a brief follow-up.  The Johnson & Johnson company has put together a website as part of their “Campaign for Nursing’s Future.”  It is DiscoverNursing.com.  The site allows visitors to explore specialties within the field of nursing and obtain facts about the profession.  More information on the nursing programs at Baylor can be found at the Louise Herrington School of Nursing website.

Career Spotlight: Medical and Health Services Managers

 

Medical and health services managers are also referred to as healthcare administrators or healthcare executives.  There are numerous subcategories within this profession.  Medical and health services managers focus on the business and regulatory aspects of healthcare, including the maintenance and analysis of patient information, managing budgets, overseeing projects, and ensuring that an organization meets applicable legal standards.  Work settings could include hospitals, clinics, long-term care facilities, and outpatient facilities.  For students who are interested in working in a medical environment without an educational background in the hard sciences, healthcare administration could be a viable option

Some medical and health services managers enter the field with a Bachelor’s degree, but a Master’s degree is common in this field.  When trying to determine a relevant undergraduate major at Baylor, business and nursing majors are some options to compare.  A directory of accredited graduate programs in healthcare administration can be found on the website of the Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Management Education.  One particular type of medical and health services manager is a health information manager.  More information on career paths in health information management can be found on the American Health Information Management Association’s website.

For more information on Baylor’s MBA program in Healthcare Administration, click here.

Scribe: An Ancient Profession Adapted for Modern Medicine

When I hear the word scribe, I picture someone in ancient times writing on parchment, with an inkwell by his side.  Imagine my surprise when I was invited to a meeting this semester about scribe jobs for students!  With the same intent, but a modern twist, scribes are changing the way emergency medicine is practiced all across the country.

Scribes are hired and trained to provide medical charting for physicians.  This frees up the physician to focus on the patient, rather than getting bogged down with documentation.  The physician reviews the scribe’s work before approving it.  Not only do scribes help increase the efficiency of emergency departments, but scribes gain valuable experience in preparation for application to medical school.  Medical schools expect that a student has spent many hours observing in a medical setting.  Working as a scribe offers the added benefits of learning medical terminology and getting paid.  PhysAssist Scribes, Scribe America, and Emergency Medicine Scribe Systems are three companies currently hiring pre-healthcare students for scribe positions.  Even more organizations can be found by doing an online search.  Some students are able to scribe as a summer job.  Visit the company websites for more details.

*Update:  Toby Mulligan, Chief Executive Officer of ProScribe, called our office to let us know that ProScribe hires and trains scribes for the Waco market.  Click here for more details.

Career Spotlight: Registered Nurse

An essential part of the healthcare team, registered nurses make up the largest healthcare occupation.  According to the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics, job growth for registered nurses is projected at a rate faster than average.  It is actually the occupation expected to add the most jobs between 2010 and 2020.  The list of specialties within the field of nursing is almost endless.  Registered nurses can specialize by type of patient, employment setting, disease, organ or body system.  Hospitals employ 60% of registered nurses, so students who particularly enjoy volunteering in the hospital setting might consider this a viable career path.

Baylor students can declare a Pre-Nursing major.  Students must complete a series of prerequisite courses (including chemistry, anatomy and physiology, and statistics) and earn a grade of C or better to be eligible for admission to the Louise Herrington School of Nursing.  The Undergraduate Catalog states that “admission is competitive and not guaranteed.”  Students should be aware that the last two years of nursing courses are completed at the campus in Dallas, Texas.  An alternative to the traditional Bachelor of Science in Nursing program is the FastBacc program, designed for students who complete a Bachelor’s degree in another area.

For additional information on a career in nursing, such as many of the areas of specialization, visit the Occupational Outlook Handbook.