There is something of a job dissatisfaction epidemic in U.S. healthcare at the moment. Health Jobs, an online healthcare jobs recruitment service, says that the current talent shortage and dropping of standards among certain healthcare institutions is one of the reasons for this. This, however, is a reason that is closely related to the current vicissitudes of healthcare in this country; there are other reasons which are much more long standing. We can say that there will always be the phenomenon of job dissatisfaction, and one of the main reasons for this is that candidates simply don’t know what they’re getting in for when they begin their first healthcare job.
It sounds ridiculous, considering how much of a healthcare education is spent preparing candidates for their future roles, but the truth is that there is really no substitute for working full time as a healthcare professional. Think about it, how much can you really know about the daily grind from a short placement and the myriad “simulations” a healthcare education provides? This though leads us to a much more positive conclusion regarding healthcare education – it never stops.
Learning on the Job
Indeed, the thing that really makes you a doctor or a nurse is working as a doctor or a nurse – and not on a placement either. To some extent, this phenomenon is seen across professions, but it is particularly prominent within healthcare. Although this is not universal, healthcare institutions ought to realize this and provide continued education for employees who are actually working right now. This is because it is certainly possible to profitably advance your healthcare education, and therefore career, when you are already working in healthcare.
Part of doing this is the phenomenon of “turning a job into a career”, and it can either take the form of education as you work or employers paying for more formal education specifically for their employees. Nevertheless, the whole scene can be pretty complex and daunting, and you might be wondering, if you are already working in healthcare, how you can get started in further education. Here are two of the most common options:
Get A Degree Remotely
This option has little to do with the job you will be doing as you get that degree, except that working while you study will allow you not only to accrue genuine experience that is relevant to your studies, but it will also provide you with a source of income to pay for those studies. In that sense, the job is very much relevant to the education which is going on simultaneously.
In order to take this route, you will need to find an educational program that does not involve physically attending class. You will also need to be honest with yourself and be sure you are up to the double strain of working and studying. Pull it off, however, and it will not only make you more qualified, but you will also have extra experience. Furthermore, the fact you studied and worked at the same time will look mightily impressive on your resume.
Take Part in the On-the-Job Training Schemes
This is where you learn skills relevant to the job and which you did not have on day one, within the institution where you are working. Taking part in such schemes will also impress your employers and possibly make you eligible for promotions. When you leave the job, the fact you trained there will make that reference letter all the more impressive.
Healthcare education cannot afford to stop as the whole expertise thing is changing too rapidly. This is truly learning something by doing it.
Leave a Reply