By Ranjan K Baruah
Career in health is not only limited to doctors as many other people are associated with the health sector. If we look at the health sector then we will find that there are other professions apart from doctors or nurses. In this regard one of the important parts of the healthcare profession is paramedics or paramedical.
A paramedic works in emergency medical situations. A paramedic may be more formally defined as a medical professional who provides medical care at an advanced life support level in the pre-hospital environment, usually in an emergency, at the point of illness or injury. They are the key people who help doctors.
As there has been a boom in the health industry, so there is more demand for paramedical professionals. India is witnessing the phase of epidemiological change — along with communicable diseases the non-communicable diseases are also showing an increasing bent over the past few years.
The number of people aged 80 years or more will almost quadruple between now and 2050. It will lead to unprecedented and universal growth in the need for long-term care. For economic reasons or others there might be shift in health care and this will need professionals who can provide service or care the people.
There are many paramedical courses at the graduate as well as the post-graduate level. Apart from degree courses there are also diploma courses, including PG diploma and certificate courses.
There are also skill development training programmes related to some courses. Some of the courses are like Bachelor of Occupational Therapy, Bachelor of Physio / Physical Therapy, Graduation in Audiology and Speech Therapy, Bachelor courses in Mental Rehabilitation ), BSc (Radiography ), BSc (Radio Therapy ), BSc /MSc (Nuclear Medicine), BSc (Medical Technology X-Ray), Bachelor and Master Degree courses in Pharmacy, Courses for Operation Theatres, Medical Laboratory Technology, Bachelor of Speech, Language and Hearing (BSLH), Bachelor of Naturopathy and Yogic Science, Dental Hygienis, Dental Mechanics, Diploma In Community Health, Certified Radiological Assistant and Radiation Therapy Technician.
These courses are offered in many colleges and institutes in different parts of the country. For some of the courses, aspirants must have Physics, Chemistry and Biology at senior secondary level.
However, certificate courses can be opt by aspirants coming from any stream. Apart from government hospitals or dispensaries, aspirants may get employment in various nursing homes, hospitals and others. Employability skills are important to get jobs or to be employed anywhere in the world.
Aspirants must look at the credibility of the institute before taking admission as all private colleges or institutes are may not be credible. We shall publish more information related to these courses and institutes in our next edition.
According to my experiences I have seen many students who do not get admission into medical or nursing in good institutes choose the paramedical courses. In Assam, there are government medical colleges which offer different paramedical courses and the same should be started in other northeastern states too. I have interacted with many students of paramedical courses and found that there is a challenge when it comes to government jobs in few states. Students must make a good planning once they take admission in different paramedical courses.
There are medical colleges and other institutes under various governments that offer various courses in paramedics.
This is a growing profession, so one can plan well to step into these professions. Remuneration would vary from place to place. But with experience one can earn more and can also go abroad if they have expertise and knowledge.
Some can also start their own economic activities by providing health care to people who are in need. Interested people may also work with nongovernmental organizations which are working for the health welfare in various parts of the world apart from our own region.
(The author is a career mentor, skill trainer and motivational speaker and can be reached at [email protected] or 8473943734 for any career related queries)