Learn More About the Health Professions
There are hundreds of career pathways within healthcare which you can choose from. Here are some of the pathways we see our graduates pursue most often.
Allied health professions represent approximately 60% of all healthcare providers in the U.S. These professionals deliver services involving the identification, evaluation and prevention of diseases and disorders, dietary and nutrition services, rehabilitation, and health systems management. Many professions fall under the wide umbrella of allied healthcare including, but not limited to, audiology, dental hygienist, emergency medical technicians, health administration, information management, physical therapy, radiology, and speech pathology.
Athletic trainers are highly qualified, multi-skilled healthcare professionals specifically trained in the prevention, examination, diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of medical conditions and emergent, acute, and chronic injuries. Athletic trainers render service or treatment and reduce risk in a variety of settings.
Learn more about this profession and about Pre-Athletic Training at Drake.
Chiropractors focus on the health of the body's main structures: the skeleton, the muscles and the nerves. These professional improve and preserve these structures by making adjustments to them.
Learn more about the profession and about Pre-Chiropractic at Drake.
Those in the field of dentistry provide a wide range of oral health care. They are instrumental in the early detection of oral diseases and disorders and can also serve as first responders in the event of a large-scale health emergency. Careers within dentistry include, but are not limited to; dentists, dental hygienists, dental assistants, dental laboratory technicians and allied dental educators.
Learn more about the profession and about Pre-Dentistry at Drake.
Like a good business, health care organizations need good management to keep things running smoothly. Healthcare administrators are professionals who plan, direct, coordinate and supervise the delivery of health care. Healthcare management is one of the fastest growing fields within the health care industry and is expected to continue to expand and diversify.
Learn more about Drake's Health Sciences: Health Care Administration major.
Medical informatics involves understanding and promoting the effective organization, analysis, management and use of information in health care. People who work in medical informatics must be knowledgeable about both information science and healthcare in order to understand how data and information affect healthcare organizations. They know how to acquire, store, protect, retrieve and use a wide range of information about health and medicine.
Medical doctors diagnose illness and injury, prescribe and administer treatment, and advise patients about disease prevention and management. Most people think of doctors as those in allopathic medicine (M.D.s). However, students can also choose to pursue Osteopathic medicine (D.O.). Osteopathic doctors are licensed to do everything an allopathic doctor can do, including diagnosing, treating, prescribing medications and performing surgery. In addition to these skills, osteopathic doctors have a strongly holistic approach to their practice and use "manipulative" medicine, which is a distinct system of hands-on diagnosis and treatment that focuses on the musculoskeletal system.
Health professionals in mental health-related careers help individuals of all ages deal with a variety of life stresses and problems, including addiction, substance abuse, problems with self-esteem, aging-related mental health issues, family, parenting or marital problems, grief, anger or depression, and other emotional or behavioral issues. Some mental health professionals hold advanced degrees and specialize in brain function and human behavior. They are able to help patients with clinically diagnosed mental illnesses and may use a variety of strategies for treatment including, but not limited to, medical, psycho-therapeutic, or psycho-social therapies.
Nurses are hands-on healthcare professionals who provide focused and highly personalized care. Nurses promote health, prevent disease and help patients cope with illness. They have a unique scope of practice in that they can practice independently, although most collaborate with all members of the healthcare team. Career opportunities in this field range from entry-level to doctoral-level.
Changes in diet can have a significant impact on our health. What we eat can be the difference between causing and preventing many health problems including, but not limited to, obesity, diabetes, cancer and heart disease. Dietetics is a health field that focuses on the interaction between nutrition and heath. Dietitians design "nutrition therapies" that help the body use the natural nutrients and properties in food to protect against disease and promote health.
Occupational therapists focus on increasing independence, participation and engagement in daily living activities for individuals, groups and populations. They enable individuals of all ages to live their lives to the fullest by promoting health and well-being. Occupational therapists help people develop, recover, adapt, enhance, learn and improve the skills needed for accomplishing their goals and dreams. Occupational therapy is an important part of treatment for people with various illnesses and disabilities.
Optometry involves everything having to do with eyes and vision, including examination, diagnosis, and treatment of eyes, facial structures, and vision. Although optometry includes a variety of professions, the most well-known is the optometrist, or the primary physician for eye and vision care. Ophthalmologists are professionals that can also perform eye surgery in addition to diagnosing and treating eye conditions. Opticians fit patients for eyeglasses and contact lenses.
As "medication experts," pharmacists play a vital role in improving patient care through the treatment and information they provide. The goal of pharmacy care is to maximize positive health care outcomes and improve a patient's quality of life with minimum risk. Much of what the general public knows about pharmacists includes dispensing medications in community settings. However, with dispensing becoming more automated, pharmacists are able to work more directly to counsel patients on their treatments and advise other health care practitioners on the selection, dosages, interactions and side effects of prescribed medications. There are a wide variety of career opportunities within community, clinical, regulatory, institutional, and many other areas of pharmacy.
Physical therapists provide services that help restore function, improve mobility, relieve pain, and prevent or limit permanent physical disabilities in patients with injuries or disease. These professionals work closely with patients of all ages, using a variety of different methods to help them recover from and manage a wide variety of physical challenges.
Learn more about the profession and about Pre-Physical Therapy at Drake.
Physician assistants are licensed health care providers that perform many of the same functions as a physician, including diagnosing and treating illness and disease, prescribing medication, performing physical exams, and advising patients on preventative medicine. In primary care settings, physician assistants treat patients with a significant amount of autonomy and can make clinical decisions under a written agreement with a licensed physician. Physician assistants work in a variety of settings and specialties.
Podiatrists are doctors who specialize in the study of human movement and the medical care of the foot and ankle. Podiatrists diagnose, treat, and advise in the prevention of foot and ankle disorders, diseases, and injuries. Podiatrists are able to detect serious health problems that might otherwise go unnoticed because many diseases manifest first through symptoms in the lower body.
Public health fosters healthy communities through education, research and promotion of healthy lifestyles. Public health professionals focus on health promotion and disease/illness/injury prevention in the U.S. and abroad. While other health professionals primarily focus on diagnosing and treating individual patients, public health professionals focus on the "big picture" as they analyze and develop programs that protect the health of communities in a variety of areas. Public health professionals play a key role in emergency preparedness and response.
Learn more about Drake's Health Sciences: Public Health major.
Careers in communication science and disorders are extremely rewarding, and the need for these professionals is growing. Career pathways in speech, language and hearing professions include, but are not limited to, audiologist, speech-language pathologist, speech, language and hearing scientist, and many others.
The broad field of sports medicine focuses on helping people improve their athletic performance, recover from injury, and prevent future injuries. Patients are not always professional athletes. Those in sports medicine also treat patients who participate in athletic activity recreationally or who want to get better results from their athletic program. They also treat patients who have suffered injuries and want to regain full function, or have a disability and want to increase their mobility and capabilities.