[ article search ] Accidental Careers |
|
|
|
Page 1 next page >> When you don’t know what to do with your life, an accidental encounter may just fill your prescription. When Shannon Sanborn somersaulted on her rollerblades, she also crashed headlong into the health care system. Two paramedics collected her from the sidewalk, the emergency room nurse checked her out, a physician ordered X-rays, and a nurse’s aide wheeled her up so the X-ray technician could photograph her injured back. Recovery was slow. Shannon regularly visited a physiotherapist. A massage therapist freed up some of her uptight muscles. A kinesiologist taught her stomach strengthening exercises to help support her back ligaments. But her lower spine continued to throb until an acupuncturist broke the pain cycle. "My nerves seemed in a stuck position," recalls Shannon. "The acupuncture treatment cut short the non-stop firing of the nerve cells and allowed my back muscles to heal completely. A combination of western and complementary medicine helped me recover." The words "doctor", "nurse", and "dentist" may jump into our minds when we think about health care careers. These professionals offer many valuable health care services. But they represent only some of the many people who help us stay healthy. As Shannon’s rollerblade crash shows, today’s health care providers deliver medicine well beyond mainstream practices. From ambulance attendants to transplant specialists, dental technicians to orthodontists, hospital admission clerks to hospital presidents, speech therapists to geneticists, naturopaths to reiki and massage therapists, there is a health career to fit everyone. KIM VOLUNTEERS Kim Andersen, 19, says that volunteering is a way of both learning next page >> |