Health & Human Service Education Online

As the health care field grows, so does the demand for trained professionals. According to the U.S. Department of Labor, "some of the fastest growing occupations in the Nation" are in the area of health care and human services, and job opportunities should be abundant during the next decade.

Health care can cover a wide range of activities, including medical services; social work and counseling; substance abuse intervention and rehabilitation; child care and welfare; family and women's health; aid for the handicapped; various forms of therapy; and senior care, such as day care and assisted living facilities. This has led to the development of numerous education and training programs for various facets of the field.

Job opportunities in the health care field are plentiful, particularly for nurses, mental health counselors and other types of therapists, home health care and family planning specialists, hospital and emergency medical personnel, retirement home and eldercare facility staff, and child and youth advocates.

A few of the most popular careers in the field of health care include:

Counseling
A counselor provides advice, guidance, and support to people with temporary problems of a personal nature, which might concern family, education, work, or mental health.

Forensic Medicine
Forensic medicine is a discipline within the medical profession which applies the principles and techniques of medicine (including dentistry, clinical psychology, biology and chemistry) to the legal system to uncover evidence.

Health Care Administrator
Health care executives plan, manage, coordinate, and supervise the delivery of health and medical services in numerous places such as hospitals.

Physical Therapist
The goal of physical therapists is to improve the overall physical functionality of their patients, using a variety of methods like guided exercise, massage, and dance, among others.

Medical and Dental Assistant
Medical and dental assistance services rank among the fastest-growth jobs in the United States at this time, and are in high demand in many places, from traditional venues such as hospitals and physicians' offices to clinics, industry, academia, and the military.

Pharmacist
A pharmacist dispenses medicines and drugs on the written orders of physicians. Pharmacists also educate and counsel patients about the use, risks and potential side effects of these substances.

Public Health
Public health is an effort to promote and improve the health of large populations such as towns, cities or entire countries. The effort of public health workers includes disease prevention, life prolongation, and citizen education.

Radiologist
Radiology is the branch of medical science that specializes in internal imaging, using high-energy radiation or other technologies. It also refers to the use of radiant energy for therapeutic purposes, such as the treatment of cancer.

Social Work
The goal of social work is to assist disadvantaged populations deal with various problems, improving the quality of their lives by enabling them to cope with stresses and difficulties of life too great for them to handle on their own.