PLANNING FOR HEALTH CAREER
You
HEALTH CAREER (combination of two words
which is Heath and Career)
• Health is a state of complete physical,
mental and social well-being and not merely
the absence of disease or infirmity.
• Career is an occupation or profession that
requires special training.
• Health careers are designed to familiarize
students with the various careers in the
medical profession and allied health
services.
• These include working with others,
communication skills, legal and ethical
responsibilities, cultural considerations in
the healthcare industry, problem solving,
decision making, accepting personal
responsibility, and self-management.
HEALTH CAREER PLANNING
• Health career Planning refers to an
individual’s plan to make a career choice,
growing in the chosen career or making a
career shift.
• Career planning involves the very
important step of self-assessment.
Components and steps in making a health
career plan:
• Self-assessment is necessary to
understand one’s capabilities and
drawbacks.
• The various career options should be
explored in detail to find a fit between
one’s abilities and the opportunities
provided by a career option.
• It involves continuous learning and
improvement to build and grow in the
chosen career path.
WHY PURSUE HEALTH CAREER?
• Perhaps the biggest benefit of being a
healthcare professional is that you will
make a difference in people’s lives.
• Good salary
• Health care workers make good
money. The average entry-level
health worker earns from $15 to $50
per hour. The more experience and
training you get in your field, the
more money you can make.
• Job Security
• Unlike many industries that are
losing workers, the healthcare field
is growing rapidly. The U.S.
Department of Labor expects health
care will generate 3 million new
wage and salary jobs between 2006
and 2016, more than any other
industry. Dozens of health careers
have good or excellent job
prospects, meaning you’ll never
have trouble finding a job.
• Do work that interests you
• A career in health can lead in many
directions. You can treat patients in
an office or study cells under a
microscope. You can work in a small
NANA
doctor’s office or run a hospital.
can examine eyes, mend bones,
clean teeth or deliver babies. The
range of skills and experiences is
limited only to your imagination.
• Find a health career that fits your
educational plans
• There are health careers that require
eight, 10, even 13 years of
specialized education after high
school, and there are health careers
you can train for in 18 to 24 months
at your local community college.
• A clear path to advancement
• It costs employers less to promote a
trusted worker than to hire someone
new. Many employers will reimburse
educational expenses and even give
you time off to go to school so you
can qualify for a higher-paying
position.
• Work with people (or not)
• Do you prefer to work alone or on a
team? Are you more comfortable
working with people or with
information? Whatever your
preference, you can find a health
career that matches your skills and
interests.
1. Self Assessment - Discover your personal
strengths through self-assessments (values,
interests, personality, testing, skills, etc.)
Guide questions to be asked:
➢ What are your strengths and weaknesses?
➢ What are your skills and abilities?
➢ What are your interests or hobbies?
➢ What are your life experiences that
motivated you to pursue a health career?
2. Career Exploration - You can explore
different careers and work environments
through career fairs, online research,
meetings, internships, alumni connections,
professional resources.
Guide questions to be asked:
➢ What career path are you going to explore?
➢ What are the job descriptions of chosen
health careers?
➢ What are the methods that you will use to
search for relevant information about your
chosen health career and work
environments that suit your personal
interests and competence?
3. Decision Making - Before you decide on
taking a career that works for you, you can
evaluate and narrow down your options
through listing the pros and cons,
comparing your personal strengths and
interests, and deciding which career fulfills
both current and future goals.
Guide questions to be asked:
➢ What health career are you going to
pursue?
➢ What are the pros and cons in pursuing
your chosen health career?
➢ Why are you going to pursue your chosen
health career?
 4. Plan of Action - Plan achievable goals
and develop strategies to reach your
goals, organize your goals into smaller
steps, identify actions for each step,
utilize helpful people and resources,
review and adapt your plan regularly.
Guide questions to be asked:
➢ What are the necessary steps that you will
do in reaching your personal health career
goals?
➢ What are your short- term and long-term
goals?
➢ What are different education and training
required in your chosen health career?
➢ What are your strategies to solve possible
problems that may arise along your way?
HEALTHCARE IN THE PHILIPPINES
The Philippines is an archipelago of some 7,000+
islands and is known for its lower cost of living, and
access to what is considered quality, affordable
healthcare.
• Healthcare in the Philippines is affordable
and good quality in and around Manila.
• The Philippine government allocated $3.2
billion to the health sector for 2020, which
was a 12% increase from the budget for
2019.
• The Philippine Department of Health (DOH)
is building and upgrading medical
infrastructure nationwide and is addressing
the need for additional health personnel,
particularly in hard-to-reach areas.
CAREER PATHWAYS
• are cluster of occupations that are grouped
because of shared skills.
• All pathways include a variety of careers
that require different levels of education,
skill, and training.
• Selecting a career pathway provides you
with an area of focus, along with flexibility
and a variety of ideas to pursue for personal
development.
HEALTH CAREER PATHWAYS
• is significant for it provides a guide on what
to take in order to achieve your desired
goals. It is a concrete representation of
your personal health career plan.
• Understanding health career pathways is
important because it makes it easier for you
to identify health career professionals,
assists you in choosing a health career, and
helps you develop a plan on how to prepare
for your chosen health career.
1. Disease Prevention and Control
• People who specialize in this career path
focus on communicable and non-
communicable diseases. Their work
includes immunization, screening of
newborns, promotion of breastfeeding,
infant diseases prevention, adolescent
healthcare and life skills.
Sample Careers:
Community Health Work
Education and Research
2. Personal Healthcare
NANA
•Professionals in this field perform
healthcare related tasks in a personal care
level. These include monitoring patients;
administering and assisting in personal care
and hygiene; performing housekeeping
duties; and advising clients on related
healthcare issues like infant care, hygiene
and nutrition.
Sample Careers:
Physical Therapist, Practical Nurse, Home
Health Aide, and Wellness Consultant.
3. Maternal and Child Care
•These health workers deal with complex
public health issues that affect women,
children and their families. These include
providing information on reproductive
health, family planning and improvement of
health delivery system through advocacy,
education and research.
Sample Careers:
Maternal and Child Health
Specialist, Midwife, Community Health
Educator, Outreach Specialist, and
Pediatrician.
4. Mental HealthCare
•These medical professionals specialize in
dealing with interpersonal and intrapersonal
relationships and life skills. These include
cognitive and psychosocial development,
promotion of healthy self-esteem through
feelings and anger management and
identifying warning signs or red flags of
learning disorders, such as ADHD, anxiety,
mood disorders, stress, and bullying.
Sample Careers:
Psychologist, Psychiatric Nurse,
Psychiatrist, Mental Health
Counselor, Clinical Social Worker, and
Marriage and Family Therapist
5. Community Healthcare
•Specialists in this area focus on the
maintenance, protection, and improvement
of the health of all community members.
Sample Careers:
Community Health Worker, Health Coach,
Community Health
Educator, Community Outreach Manager,
Family Advocate, Peer Counselor, and
Public Health Aide.
6. Environmental Healthcare Management
•These health workers try to establish the
correlation between and among the
physical, chemical, biological, social and
psychosocial factors in the surrounding
environment. These include monitoring the
quality of environment and impact of human
activities on ecosystems and developing
strategies for restoring ecosystems.
Sample Careers:
Air Pollution Analyst, Environmental Health
Educator,
Environmental Health Inspector,
Environmental Health Specialist or
Manager, Environmental Toxicologist and
Groundwater Protection Specialist.
7. Drug Prevention and Control
 • People whose careers revolve around this
area seek to reduce community and
individual problems related to alcohol and
drug abuse through evidence-based
programs and policy advocacy.
Sample Careers:
Addiction Counselor, Addiction
Nurses, and Detox Specialist.
8. Nutrition
•
Specialists in this area find ways to balance
individuals’ food and nutrition and their
impact on patient’s health. These include
meal planning, food preparation and health
and nutrition economics.
Sample Careers:
Nutritionist, Dietitian,
Clinical Dietitian, Sports Nutritionist, Public
Health Nutritionist, Nutritional Therapist, and
Nutrition Educator.
9. Health Education
•
Those who work in this field are tasked with
promotion of healthcare and training of
health workers on managing change in
healthcare. Their work involves assessing
individual and community needs, planning,
implementing and evaluating
health programs, promoting the
understanding of various health-related
behaviors plus coordinating health
education services.
Sample Careers:
Health Education Specialist, Health
Advocate, Wellness Director, Community
Health Educator, and Social Worker.
10. Dental Health
• Dental health workers deal with
various oral conditions which include
chronic mouth and facial pain, oral sores,
gum disease, tooth decay and tooth loss,
other diseases and disorders that affect the
oral cavity, and risk factors for oral diseases
which include unhealthy diet, tobacco use,
harmful alcohol use and poor oral hygiene.
Sample Careers:
Dental Hygienist, Dental Assistant, Dentist,
Dental Nurse, and Dental Health Support.
11. Occupational Safety
•
Careers in this path are related to the
safety, health and welfare of people
engaged in work or employment. These
include protecting workers from sickness,
disease and injury arising from possible
hazards of their employment and workplace.
Sample Careers:
Occupational Health and Safety Technician,
Health Inspector, and Industrial Hygienist.
12. Emergency Medical Services
•
People assigned in this work specialize in
out-of-hospital medical care. Their skills
include first-aid procedures, emergency
medical response and immediate medical
attention.
Sample Careers:
Emergency Medical Responder, Emergency
Medical Aid, Emergency Medical
Technician,
NANA
and Paramedic.
MEDICAL AND ALLIED HEALTH
PROFESSION
• Medical Profession
➢ a group of individuals qualified to practice
medicine.
Allied health professions - lines of work that still
deal with healthcare, but are distinct from medicine.
• Medical and Allied Health Proffesions
➢ They have distinct and specialized
knowledge and skills that actively work with
people accessing health and disability that
are offered services across a range of
settings.
➢ These professions include clinical laboratory
or medical technology, physical therapy,
Occupational therapy, dietetic services,
medical record personnel, radiologic
services, speech-language pathology and
audiology, and respiratory therapy.
WHO ARE THE MEDICAL AND ALLIED
HEALTH PROFESSIONALS?
• Allied health professionals are healthcare
practitioners with formal education and
clinical training credentials through
certification, registration and/or licensure.
• They collaborate with physicians and other
members of the healthcare team to deliver
high quality patient care services for the
identification, prevention, and treatment of
diseases, disabilities, and disorders.
CATEGORIZED INTO EITHER TECHNICIANS OR
THERAPISTS/TECHNOLOGISTS
Technicians
• are those who undergo training to perform
specific procedures.
• They are required to work under the
supervision of technologists or therapists.
• This category includes physical therapy
assistants, medical laboratory technicians,
radiological technicians, occupational
therapy assistants, recreation therapy
assistants and respiratory therapy
technicians.
Therapists or technologists
• have more intensive training, which
includes acquiring procedural skills.
• They evaluate patients, diagnose
conditions, develop treatment plans, and
understand the rationale behind various
treatments in order to judge their
appropriateness and potential side effects.
• They also assess patients' responses to
therapy and make appropriate decisions
about continued treatment or modification of
treatment plans. Furthermore, they are
licensed to perform these tasks.
Health Care Provider-
➢ a person who helps identify, prevent, or
treat an illness or disability.
Health Care Practitioner/ Provider
 ➢ an independent healthcare provider who is
licensed to practice on and provide general
and/or specialized care to a specific area of
the body.
Allied Health Professionals
➢ a trained healthcare provider practicing
under the supervision of a physician or
healthcare practitioner. They include
pharmacists, dental hygienists, physical
therapists, and nurses.
ALLIED HEALTH PROFESSIONALS PROVIDE
SERVICES AND ENGAGE IN ACTIVITIES SUCH
AS:
a. prevention - keep illness or injury from
happening
b. assessment/evaluation - appraisal of
the condition based on the patient's
subjective report
c. identification/diagnosis - analysis
based on signs, symptoms, and laboratory
findings
d. treatment - management and care of a
patient or the combating of disease or
disorder
e. rehabilitation/habilitation - treatment
designed to recover from injury, illness, or
disease towards a normal condition as
possible
f. advocacy - a method by which patients,
their families, attorneys, health
professionals, and citizens' groups can work
together to develop programs that ensure
the availability of high-quality healthcare for
a community
g. promotion of health and well-being-
the process of enabling people to increase
control over their health and its
determinants, and thereby h. education - the
process of sharing and gaining knowledge
improving their health
i. research - the diligent inquiry or
examination of data, reports, and
observations in a search for facts or
principles
ALLIED HEALTH PROFESSIONS THAT WE
HAVE IN THE PHILIPPINES
These are the common allied health professionals
practicing in the country with
available education and professional training.
1. Audiologist - identifies and rehabilitates
hearing impairments and related disorders
2. Chiropractor - diagnoses and treats
neuromuscular disorders, with emphasis on
treatment through manual adjustment
and/or manipulation of the spine.
3. Clinical psychologist - assesses,
diagnoses, treats and helps prevent mental
disorders
4. Dietitian / Nutritionist - promotes good
health through proper diet and treatment of
diseases
5. Emergency Medical Technician - also
known as ambulance technician; responds
quickly to any emergency and life-
threatening situation to immediately treat
serious injuries, physical or mental trauma
to increase a patient's chances of survival
NANA
Other allied health professions:
Guidance Counselor, Health Educator, Massage
Therapist, Medical assistant, Medical Technologist,
Midwife, Nurse, Occupational Therapist,
Orthotist/Prosthetist, Paramedic, Pharmacist,
Radiologic Technologist/ Radiographer, Physical
Therapist, Speech Language Pathologist,
Phlebotomist, Radiation Therapist
Respiratory Therapist, Social Worker
ALLIED MEDICAL PROFESSIONS WHOSE
SPECIALIZED TRAINING IS AVAILABLE IN
OTHER COUNTRIES:
1. Cardiovascular technologist - uses
imaging technology to help physicians
diagnose patients with cardiac (heart) and
peripheral vascular (blood vessel) ailments
2. Clinical officer - performs general medical
duties such as the diagnosis and treatment
of disease and injury, recommendation and
interpretation of medical tests, performance
of routine medical and surgical procedures,
and referral of patients to other practitioners
3. Dental hygienist - specializes in the
removal of calcaneous deposits and stains
from patients' and provides additional
services and information on prevention of
oral diseases
4. Diagnostic medical sonographist - uses
ultrasonic imaging devices to produce
diagnostic images, scans, videos, or 3D
volumes of patients' anatomy
5. Kinesiotherapist - develops and monitors
exercise programs to help people regain
muscle strength and function lost due to
injury or disease
OTHER ALLIED MEDICAL PROFESSIONS:
Kinesitherapist, Neurophysiologist, Medical
dosimetrist, Medical radiation scientist, Music
therapist, Nuclear medicine technologist,
Orthoptist, Pedorthist, Perfusionist, Surgical
technologist
HEALTH CAREER ORIENTATION PROGRAM
• Health career orientation program
➢ An activity based career exploration
to broaden your knowledge about
careers in the health field.
HEALTH CAREER HELPS YOU TO:
• Evaluate and assess such factors as
personal needs, interests and skills.
• Provide an opportunity to identify
and explore health careers.
• Learn about the duties and
responsibilities of health
professionals.
• Acquire an awareness of a wide
variety of educational training and
resources for both academic and
vocational fields.
• Pursue health career pathways for
future education/training.
FIELDS/JOBS TO EXPLORE:
Medical research, Scientific research,
technical breakthroughs, doctors,
dentists, radiology technicians, nurses,
chiropractors, pharmacists, physical and
occupational therapists
 GUIDELINES TO HELP YOU PLAN AND
DEVELOP YOUR HEALTH CAREER
PLAN
• What are my short and long term
education and career goals?
• Why did I choose these goals?
• What educational/training is required
for me to achieve my goals?
• What institutions or facilities provide
this training? Which institution or
facility is most appropriate for my
interests, lifestyle, and preferences?
Why?
• What courses will I take during
grades 11 and 12 to prepare me for
my education or training?
• What co-curricular, volunteer, or
community experiences will help me
achieve my goals?
• What do I have to do to achieve my
goals?
• What are potential challenges I may
face in the achievement of my
goals?
• What will I do to meet these
challenges?
• What is my timeline for achieving my
goals?
• How will I monitor my success as I
work to achieve my goals over the
next unknown years?
• Seek advice from at least 1 person
with specialty in certain field.

NANA