Tuesday, October 18, 2011

Health Care Education


If you are searching for health care training, you will find health care education available in vocational schools and trade schools. Therapists, nurses, doctors, and health care educators are in demand in every city across the nation. With an aging population base, and medical knowledge and health care fields expanding at a tremendous rate, health care career possibilities are endless.

Medical training is one of the fastest-growing educational fields in the U.S. Vocational and trade schools present a wide and varied curriculum, with classes that include nursing, physical therapy,*dental, family practice, emergency medicine, nutrition, pharmacy, psychology, alternative medicine, and many, many more.

There are a multitude of health education certificates and degrees available, depending on individual schools and curriculums. Students have a choice of simple certification in one or more therapies, to Associate Degrees, Bachelor Degrees, and even Master Degrees and PhDs.

Currently, the most popular Health Sciences degrees are Associates and Bachelors Degrees in Health Care Management or Registered Nurse (RN), BS of Science in Nursing, MBA in Health Care Management, Master of Health Care Administration, and Master of Science in Nursing.

If you would like to learn more about Health Care Education and and Health Care Schools, you can find more in-depth information and resources on our website.

DISCLAIMER: Above is a GENERAL OVERVIEW and may or may not reflect specific practices, courses and/or services associated with ANY ONE particular school(s) that is or is not advertised on SchoolsGalore.com.

Copyright 2007 - All rights reserved by SchoolsGalore.com, in association with Media Positive Communications, Inc.

Notice: Publishers are free to use this article on an ezine or website, provided the article is reprinted in its entirety, including copyright and disclaimer, and ALL links remain intact and active.

Michael Bustamante is a staff writer for Media Positive Communications, Inc. in association with SchoolsGalore.com. Find Health Care Schools, Colleges, Universities, Vocational Schools, and Online Schools at SchoolsGalore.com, your educational resource to locate schools.

Educational Requirements For Mental Health Jobs

Mental health care is a very broad field and offers a wide range of mental health jobs. In general most of these jobs involve counseling clients or patients. Some of the mental health practitioners include psychologists, psychiatrists, psychiatric nurses, clinical social workers, professional counselors. These professionals are mostly responsible for helping patients who are diagnosed with emotional problems and mental illness. There are various professions in mental health field and each of these has a lot of career options.

Professional Counselor - There are several jobs that fall under mental health counselor category and almost all of these involve helping and assisting individuals by providing counseling and helping them attain a healthy mind. Mental health counselors use their skills and knowledge in diagnosing and assessing psychological problems, social problems and behavioral problems. A typical diagnosis is usually based on conversation with the clients, assessment of client's education, family background, work, friends, living conditions and conducting specialized tests on them. Medical health counselors generally come from diverse educational backgrounds but a majority of them are degree holders in nursing, psychology, human services, social work, etc. They generally have to obtain graduation from a high school and then have to complete a four year program in a reputed college in any of the above mentioned disciplines such as psychology, social work, human services, etc. Then they have to complete graduation ranging from one to four years in counseling or psychotherapy or psychology. They have to obtain one of the following degrees to become a professional counselor - MEd (Master of Education), MA (Master of Arts in Psychology), MSW (Master of Social Work). If interested they can even complete a doctorate in Psychology and Education (Phd or Eed). In order to become a licensed professional counselor, an individual has to have either a doctorate or a master's degree along with two years of clinical supervision and must also clear a written examination.

Psychologist - In order to take up a mental health job as a psychiatrist an individual needs to have a doctorate in psychology or can be a psychologist with a doctorate. A doctoral degree usually requires five years of full time graduate studies. A specialist degree or any of its equivalent is mostly required in few of the states in order for an individual to work as school psychologist. Also, in order to obtain a licdnse, they need to pass a certification exam.

Psychiatrist - After completing the MD program, the real psychiatry program begins. An individual trying to secure a job as a psychiatrist has to complete a four year psychiatric residency program and has to even undergo hospital training in psychiatry.

Social Worker - A bachelor's degree in social work (BSW) is a minimum requirement in order to qualify for most of these jobs. A master's degree (MSW) is usually required in order to secure a job in private or public agencies.

With a lot of scope of growth in medical health jobs, it is high time, students notice the career prospects and make a note of the educational requirements needed to secure a job in this sector.

Christine Crotts likes a house full of plants. If only they would stop dying. Christine has written a site containing reviews on metal plant stands, as well as tiered plant stands.

The Importance of Physical Education

Physical education or health and physical education are the areas of knowledge that will ultimately drive our success engine. We are physical and spiritual beings. Our mind, body, and spirit are all connected and learning how they work together and how to care for them can save us from unnecessary pain and suffering. Knowing how to take care of our body, mind, and spirit will lead us down the path toward happiness, health, and wealth.

The most powerful tool of influence we have is to model good behaviors. We should be sure we are working on our health and fitness at the same time we preach to others about the value health, fitness, and participation in sports. Each of us will have our own issues, goals, and obstacles to living a healthy lifestyle, but we must strive for excellence in this area. When we live it, we will feel the difference. We will find it much easier to dream, act, achieve, and enjoy.

There are a few areas of health and physical education we will focus on at this time. First, I will discuss the area of fitness. Fitness has to do with stamina, strength, and flexibility. Our objective should be fit enough so that a day of physical activity does not lay us up for a week.

To begin a fitness routine you need to visit your doctor and let him or her know what you want to do. They will give you the practical advice based on your over-all health. In doing this fitness routine you should build in stretching, anaerobic exercise, and aerobic exercise. You most definitely do NOT need to buy expensive gym equipment or memberships at clubs to get started. There are a number of good programs you can do right at home. Having someone who will do this with you and hold you accountable would be a great benefit. Any fitness program you actually do and do consistently will help you in all areas of your life. You will have more energy, will perform better on the job, will feel less stress, and will sleep better. You must take action to achieve those benefits. The motivation to follow through and the building of the routine is most people's down-fall. That is topic of a future article.

The second area is that of athleticism. Athleticism covers things like stamina, coordination, speed, and agility. It encompasses the skills that enable us to do many different physical tasks. It is also the skills that would allow us to participate in team and individual sports for our entire lives. Skiing, swimming, basketball, baseball, softball, cycling, tennis, bowling, and of course golf are several of many sports that can provide a fun and competitive outlet for people of all ages. For those who are not naturally athletic becoming fit and actually participating in athletic activities and exercises can and will improve that athleticism. You can find that competitive outlet and not feel embarrassed about your performance. Just go get in the game.

Nutrition is a broad topic. There are basic principles that you need to understand. First, your body needs basic building blocks for your cells. It must get vitamins and minerals in the correct amount to operate to its maximum abilities. We get those vitamins in minerals from the foods and drinks we consume. The next basic principle is that the fuel for our body is calories. If we consume more calories than our body uses it converts the extra calories to fat. When we consume fewer calories than our body needs we burn excess fat. In each case we can develop serious health conditions if either problem continues for an extended period of time. One other fundamental principle is we must keep our bodies hydrated. Dehydration is an often ignored and a serious problem in America today. Within those foundations there are numerous other nutrition related topics that can be discussed all of which can impact our overall health. There are a number of books that would be highly recommended reading.

The final category would be that of our well-being. It is this area that may well be the most important, yet the most misunderstood and the most difficult to share. Our well-being consists not only of our general health and fitness, but our spiritual well-being as well. It is that spiritual side that has be so over-looked in western medicine. We are spiritual beings anyway you look at it and denying that truth can lead to serious consequences.

Spirituality goes beyond who we are. It includes things like beliefs, values, emotions and intelligence. These aspects of a person's personality are not easily understood, but profoundly impact who they are and their well-being. There are psychological processes that can show people how to change your beliefs, values, and emotions. We can do things to improve our ability to think and reason. At the same time, genetics plays a role in those areas and will influence health and well-being as do injuries to the brain. Those factors are only part of the spiritual picture.
Spirituality has played a significant role in healing in most religions of the world. Eastern religions and native religions have kept more of those healing arts in tact over the centuries than have the western, Christian nations. Any discussion regarding spirituality and health would be incomplete if it did not include a discussion of faith and religious creeds. It also must be noted that while religious people tend to live longer and healthier than non-religious people being religious does not automatically mean you will be healthy; however, if you are truly a convert of a religious faith you will tend to be healthier than those who don't.

Does it matter what religious faith you are? First, we must point out that ALL religions are mutually exclusive. They have core beliefs that set them apart from other religious views and those core beliefs cannot all be true. Given that fact it is a reasonable conclusion that it does matter because each will have a different view on how an individual is to live their life and what happens to you upon death. It then would make sense to investigate the truth claims of the religions of the world. If you were to start your investigation with Christian truth claims you may find that you can dismiss all the other claims because a fundamental truth claim of Christianity is that Jesus Christ was the only way to reach God, the father. If those claims are true then all other claims to the contrary are false.

We truly don't fully understand the spiritual realm but we do know it does positively impact our physical and emotional health and well-being. So, seek the truth, build a relationship with God, and enjoy improved health and well-being.

Christian Barnard received his BA degree in Economics and his Masters degree in Special Education. After graduating, Christian began his study of Neuro-Linguistic Programming, hypnosis, Behavioral Modeling, Time Line Therapy techniques, Personal finance, and education. He spent much of his career working with unhealthy, unmotivated and unsuccessful students helping to get them back on track.

Medical Technology - Health Education - Chronic Pain

Innovative medical technology and health education is essential for helping patients so that diseases can be cured rather than be managed. This is particularly true for prevention of nerve related chronic pain.

One of my patients told me that he sees the field of medicine as purely supportive and useful for managing diseases but really does not cure diseases. I did explain to him that when diseases are caught too late, he is perfectly correct.

The idea is to diagnose early to have possible cures for the disease. Since patients present to the doctor only when they are symptomatic, it is usually too late for a good chance for a cure. The best time to have a cure is when there are signs rather than symptoms.

The body takes a lot of abuses before one get symptomatic, and early diagnosis is really essential. Since I help patients with nerve related muscle pain and discomfort, I will limit my health blog only to this topic. It is essential that I put my thoughts in writing so that others may receive education and benefit from my many years in medical technology innovation to develop Electrical Twitch Obtaining Intramuscular Stimulation (eToims Twitch Relief Method).

The time to get a medical opinion is before one has pain. Everyone should learn how to look at their muscles to see if they look swollen. There should be no well defined margins or grooves beside or around the muscle of interest. When the muscle is relaxed, the muscle should not look as though it is contracted. If it does so, this is a sign of muscle shortening and muscle spasm making the muscle look very tight.

The skin overlying the muscle should not be thick and adhesed to the underlying tissue. The pores in the skin overlying the muscle should not be clearly visible. If there is hair loss in the area that is also not normal. All these are signs of trophic neurogenic skin changes, recognizable just by looking carefully. If these clinical signs are present, you already have nerve related muscle problems and you are a candidate for developing chronic pain if you already do not have chronic pain presently.

Jennifer Chu, M.D. emeritus professor of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, pioneered eToims Twitch Relief Method that utilizes surface electrical stimulation to locate motor points (trigger points). The motor points are then stimulated to induce strong local muscle contractions, termed twitches. This results in reduced muscle pain and discomfort in the areas that were stimulated. The involved pain/discomfort-relieving mechanism is thought to include local muscle exercise and stretch effects. eToims Soft Tissue Comfort Center® specializes in diagnosis and treatment which ends muscle discomfort and pain.

© 2007 copyright www.stopmusclepain.com

Accredited Health Care Career Study Opportunities

Study opportunities inside the industry of health care give students the knowledge to step inside a wide breadth of careers. Students can decide on an area of study once they research program possibilities.

Education can be completed at many colleges across the country giving students the skills they need for this fast growing field. The field is focused on treating and preventing illness by providing the public with a variety of services offered by health care facilities. Students can work through programs from the associate's to doctorate's degree level of training. The area of study determines what degree levels are offered. Some educational areas may only offer undergraduate training and others may offer all educational levels. To determine what opportunities exists students should research their area of interest.

The field is broad and students can complete programs inside concentration areas that include:

*Physician Assistant

This study opportunity prepares students to correctly diagnose and treat patients while under the direct supervision of a physician. Students can enter several areas like cardiology and orthopedics by completing programs tailored to one area of the health care field. Education centers on understanding how to work with patients by examining them and creating a workable treatment plan. Students should also expect to learn to perform everyday administrative tasks and medical research. Areas of study will include pharmacology, patient assessment, surgery, evidence-based medicine, anatomy, and immunology.

*Health Education

The process of teaching people how to become and stay healthy is covered inside health education degree programs. This field is continuing to grow in popularity, as people in today's society become more health oriented. Training is centered on teaching students to understand the complete process of designing, implementing, and assessing health programs throughout different communities. Programs can be about a wide range of topics relating to health and wellness. For example, professionals can implement a nutrition, exercise, or health-screening program. Through focused courses students learn the practices of evaluating the communities needs in which they work. Educational courses include topics on alcohol, behavior, health psychology, community health, and stress management. Most professionals work inside local hospitals and clinics where they are accessible to the entire community.

*Surgical Assisting

Associates degree programs teach students to be an important member of the surgical staff at a hospital. Students explore the procedures used inside an operating room to learn how to create a sterile environment and assist surgeons during surgery. This includes operating suction devices, diagnostic tools, and supplies. Students also learn to know what types of instruments go with different surgeries, which helps them understand how to anticipate the surgeon's moves. Subjects studied typically include courses in microbiology, medical terminology, and human anatomy.

Other educational training options include working through programs in cardiovascular technology, preventive medicine, and public health. Educational training in health care is essential when pursuing a career. Students can obtain accredited health care degrees by pursuing their interests and completing programs. Full accreditation is provided by agencies such as the Accrediting Bureau of Health Education Schools ( http://www.abhes.org/ ) to training programs that meet all criteria and offer a quality education.

DISCLAIMER: Above is a GENERIC OUTLINE and may or may not depict precise methods, courses and/or focuses related to ANY ONE specific school(s) that may or may not be advertised at PETAP.org.

Copyright 2010 - All rights reserved by PETAP.org.

Renata McGee is a staff writer for PETAP.org. Locate Health Care Schools and Colleges as well as Online Health Care Schools and Colleges at PETAP.org, your Partners in Education and Tuition Assistance Programs.

Education and Certification For Health Care Professionals

The health care industry will generate more jobs through 2016 than any other U.S. industry, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The job prospects for these professionals are very good for the foreseeable future. Several factors fuel the high demand for health care workers, including:

* Baby boomers are approaching retirement age and are expected to require more care as they age.
* With technological advances medical doctors have opportunities to work on unusual and demanding cases. This increases the need for allied health professionals to attend to patient care.
* High tech equipment requires additional workers who are trained to operate the specific equipment.
* With more and more options for tests and treatments, people typically use more care than in previous generations. Also, because of early detection and treatment advances, people are living longer.
* There is a nationwide shortage of registered nurses, due largely to the shortage of nursing professionals to provide health care education.

Health care professions offer ample opportunities for advancement. The key to advancement in these professions is health care education. With further education, workers can become specialists in any number of specialties, including case management, grief counseling, legal nurse consulting, and crisis intervention counseling, among many others. Some of the less common education programs prepare students to be funeral service assistants, meditation instructors, alternative/holistic care practitioners, hypnotherapists, and spiritual counselors. With the required education, professionals may also become administrators or health educators.

For those interested in nursing, there's a common sequence of advancement in this high demand field. Becoming a registered nurse requires a two- to three-year diploma or associate's degree in nursing or a four-year bachelor's of science in nursing. Registered nurses with bachelor's degrees have more career advancement opportunities. Online programs allow registered nurses to receive credit toward their bachelor's degrees in nursing for previous coursework and experience.

Many colleges, universities, community colleges, and professional schools offer health care education. They offer degree, certification, and/or diploma programs. Quality programs prepare students to sit for the national certification exams in their specialties. Flexible class times, evening and weekend classes, and online classes make it possible for working professionals to continue their education without leaving their jobs. Online courses may be self-paced independent study or may involve more structured learning.

Many employers reimburse for professional education classes. Larger places of employment may even sponsor courses, certification programs, and seminars at their institutions. This makes it easier for staff to attend and keep up-to-date in their fields.

Because health care standards and procedures change frequently, professionals benefit from continuing education courses in their specialties. In fact most specialties require coursework for recertification. The number of courses required for recertification and number of years between certifications vary according to the specialty.

This industry is the largest employer in the U.S. and it's still growing rapidly. Careers in health care are as close to recession proof as any. Continuing health care education provides opportunities for advancement and specialization in a wide variety of rewarding careers.

Chris Robertson is an author of Majon International, one of the worlds MOST popular internet marketing companies on the web.
Learn more about Health Care Education.