Photo by Matthias Zomer
What opportunities await someone with a caring nature who wants to get into the caregiving profession? Let’s find out what possibilities one can take as a caregiver.
A caregiver needs someone with a heart to take care of others and a nurturing personality to ensure other people’s welfare. Their services are very much needed, particularly in this post-pandemic caregiving. If you are considering this career path, there are plenty of opportunities. If you are interested in reading about the realities surrounding the practice, it helps to read the book “One Caregiver’s Journey” by Eleanor Gaccetta. Contrary to popular belief, caregiving is not limited to caring for older people in nursing homes. A caregiver is also responsible for meeting the needs of children or disabled or injured individuals of any age. The career options for caregivers are unlimited.
Caregivers typically know what they want to do in life, wanting to care for someone and extending compassion and empathy. They tend to be a naturally supportive person and can practice a lot of love languages at the same time. Determining if you have a passion for caring is the first step to finalizing that caregiving career path.
1 – Play Therapist
If you love playing with children and watching over them regularly, this job might be good for you. Children have this natural inclination to play, which is their way of socializing and displaying their language. Playing is how a child explores the world around them and is also a way for them to express themselves. Play Therapy is a sub-branch of psychotherapy who have completed course work and obtained a graduate degree with additional training and experience. It takes a lot of patience and wisdom to understand children’s behavior, and identifying their struggles by observing is another complex area. It would be best if you were a Registered Play Therapist (RPT) to practice this job and earn your credentials before becoming a licensed professional.
2 – Child Life Specialist
Hospitals typically get a child life specialist to work in the pediatric department and usually deal with children and their families. They assist in ensuring the children are comfortable during hospital visits and educate children on their respective health issues. To be a Child Life Specialist, you must have a Bachelor’s degree in any field, preferably related to caregiving or children. There will be specialized training, an internship, and a certification exam.
3 – Geriatric Care Manager
Working with the elderly and their families is the fundamental responsibility of the senior care manager. This is the most common career path related to caregiving. Their services guide families to make sound decisions regarding the elderly patients’ welfare and ideal quality of life. Geriatric care managers aid in relieving the stress the families are feeling. To become a professional in this field, you need to have completed course work and obtained a Master’s degree in any health care or mental health field with additional training in the senior sector. Once you have completed the necessary prerequisites, you may take the certification exam for you to practice successfully.
4 – Occupational Therapist
Occupational therapists have similar job descriptions as physical therapists. The difference is occupational therapists have a more holistic approach to helping patients improve their daily living. Pediatric occupational therapy is a specialization that involves assisting kids in building age-appropriate behaviors. They aid in restoring a child from sensory struggles and social and enhanced cognitive skills. A Master’s degree is required followed by accumulating fieldwork experience, then successful completion of a licensure exam to practice professionally. Being an occupational therapist for children and adults is a gratifying job as you see their holistic progress from the way they started.
5 – Nurse
A registered nurse has plenty of career options, from working in a hospital alongside medical doctors, to caregiving. They offer emotional support to both patients and their families. Nurses are essential in a team of healthcare professionals, since they are the ones who attend to the patients firsthand and assess the ailments they are feeling. They are the first responders in hospital emergencies and even in nursing homes, hospices, schools, and other living facilities. A Registered Nurse requires a Bachelor’s degree and then admission into a nursing school to complete the program.
6 – Prosthetics
Caregivers can even participate in fabricating and designing prosthetic limbs for patients. Additionally, they can assist in fittings and the recovery process of mobilizing those artificial limbs. Initially, prosthetics may be in charge of the design and construction of medical support technology. Over the years, prosthetics specialists now assist and supervise in orthotic technicians, which is a specialization under medical appliance technicians. Individuals in this field require a Master’s Degree in orthotics and prosthetics with an on-the-job training internship.
7 – Certified Nursing Assistant
Caregivers commonly go for this route in their career. They are not limited to working only in a hospital and can explore other healthcare facilities. Certified Nursing Assistants are the primary caregivers in senior nursing facilities and hospitals tending to basic patient needs. They do not assume responsibility for such tasks as distributing medications or technical equipment management. Persons wanting to become a CNA must complete coursework at an accredited institution.
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