Healthcare

It is often said that if you have your health, you have everything. Maybe you would like to be involved in ensuring that this can apply to as many people as possible? Then healthcare could well be the sector for you. Like the Medical profession, healthcare offers you rewarding and varied work that will take a fair amount of training, but will be worthwhile in terms of job satisfaction, salary and the ability to relocate almost anywhere.

Healthcare can be split into the following sectors:

Allied health professionals (AHPs) – this is the name for the group of professionals working in this sector that provide care for patients different to that doctors, nurses or dentists provide. An AHP might be the person that diagnoses a problem (e.g. a radiologist), the person that aids recovery (e.g. a physiotherapist) or someone that specialises in a particular area of the body (like a chiropodist).

Here’s a breakdown of the main roles within the AHP group:

  • Arts therapies
  • Chiropody or Podiatry
  • Dietetics
  • Operating department practice
  • Orthoptics
  • Occupational therapy
  • Physiotherapy
  • Prosthetics and orthotics
  • Psychology
  • Psychotherapy
  • Radiography 
  • Speech and language therapy


Ambulance services – a whole team of people are behind those sirens, saving peoples’ lives. There are also non-emergency ambulances, providing a service to those that need to attend hospital regularly and can’t get there alone. 

Complementary and alternative therapies – there are a huge range of complementary and alternative therapist roles you can train in; you can browse the various areas here. Some of the better known ones are counselling, reflexology and hypnotherapy. 

Dental care – as well as the dentists that lead this team, there are opportunities in dental nursing, dental hygiene, dental therapy and dental technology.

Healthcare science – scientists in this sector might be researching genetics, pathology (cause and progression of illnesses) or abnormalities in the human body. Pharmacists also come under this area.

Nursing and midwifery – nurses work closely with patients, be they on the ward, in surgery or in a respite home, to ensure their needs are met and to support the work of doctors. Midwives work hard to make sure the health of both mother and child are the best they can be.

Other healthcare roles

  • Clinical support staff
  • Environmental health
  • Healthcare management
  • Regulatory affairs


See the roles described in our Medical sector; also check out the Social Care and Guidance Work sector for related career opportunities. 

Check out the professional bodies’ own entries in the Profession Finder; there are a number of professional bodies covering these sectors. 

Here’s some things you really want to know: 


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