Health Careers Terminology
Health s cience e ducation (H SE)- programs can prepare a
student for immediate employment in many health care
careers or for additional education after graduation.
Associate’s degree- which is awarded by a career/technical
school or a community college after completion of a prescribed
two-year course of study.
Bachelor’s d egree- which is awarded by a college or university
after a prescribed course of study that usually lasts for four or
more years.
Master’s d egree- sometimes required; is awarded by a college
or university after completion of one or more years of work
beyond a bachelor’s degree.
Doctorate o r d octoral d egree- which is awarded by a college or
university after completion of two or more years of work
beyond a bachelor’s or master’s degree.
Certification- means that a person has fulfilled the
requirements of education and performance and meets the
standards and qualifications established by the professional
association or government agency that regulated a particular
career.
Registration- is required in some health care careers; is
performed by a regulatory body (professional association or
state board) that administers examinations and maintains a
current list (“registry”) of qualified personnel in a given health
care area.
Licensure- is a process whereby a government agency
authorizes individuals to work in a given occupation.
Continuing education u nits (CEUs)- are required to renew
licenses or maintain certification or registration in many states.
Multicompetent o r m ultiskilled w orker- workers hired who can
perform a variety of health care skills.
Entrepreneur - is an individual who organizes and manages a
business and assumes its risks.
Health S cience Pathways
Therapeutic Services Careers
● Directed toward changing the health status of the
patient over time.
● Workers help patients who are injured, physically or
mentally disabled, or emotionally disturbed; workers
are working to get patients to function at their
maximum capacity.
● Workers who are in a therapeutic services career
might work at a rehabilitation facilities, hospitals,
clinics, mental health facilities, daycare facilities,
long-term care facilities, home health care agencies,
schools, and government agencies.
● Some jobs include anesthesiologist assistant,
audiologist, certified nursing assistant, dentist,
emergency medical technician, medical assistant,
paramedic, respiratory therapist, social worker,
surgical technologist, etc.
Diagnostic Services Careers
● These workers create a picture of the health of that
patient at a single point in time.
● Some jobs include cardiovascular technologist,
genetic counselor, mammographer, phlebotomist,
Neurodiagnostic technologist, and many more.
Health Informatics Careers
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