Healthcare Management - A Career in Healthcare Without a Medical Degree

Healthcare is an expanding industry. The need for qualified doctors and medical staff in hospitals will continue to increase as will the need for skilled managers to run them.

Hospital managers or healthcare administrators plan, coordinate and manage the business related activities within a hospital or medical practice and ensure proper delivery of services. This includes activities such as creating and supervising work schedules and managing finances. Individuals that choose this career path usually have sympathetic personalities and genuinely want to help others. They also need to display good interpersonal skills and leadership ability as directing and motivating others forms a key part of the position.

On an academic level, entry into this field requires at least a bachelor's degree and most healthcare management professionals hold a master's degree in health administration, health sciences or business administration. Graduates generally begin their careers as administrative assistants and move on to become managers, administrators or department heads once they've gained some experience.

The number of hospital administrators present in a hospital will vary and depend to a large extent on the size of the facility. A larger medical facility may have an administrator that's responsible for each department i.e. nursing, physical therapy and patient records. In smaller facilities there may only be one administrator that takes care of all activities across the board, either on their own or with the help of an assistant. For this reason it can be more beneficial for graduates to start out at a smaller facility to get a more hands on experience across all departments.

Hospital administrators need to keep up to date on industry development and regulations to ensure that their medical practice stays compliant. The provision of safe healthcare and accreditation of institutions is one area where standards and regulations are enforced strictly. Accreditation as a practice aims to minimize and prevent the occurrence of human error through standards development and incident reporting. In South Africa, medical professionals across all areas of specialization need to be registered with the Health professions council before they are allowed to practice.

According to the US Bureau of labor statistics, projected growth of this career field between 2010 and 2020 is 22 percent (which is considered faster than average across all occupations). The median annual wage of health service managers in 2011 was $86,400. According to Pay scale, starting salaries usually range from $35,000 - $95,000 a year while more experienced healthcare managers can earn over $200,000 a year.

The Specialized Orthopedic Instruments Required For Orthopedic Surgeries

It is the job of orthopedic surgeons to help patients restore the functions performed by their skeletal system. Most common types of orthopedic surgeries include a hand surgery performed to release tendons for the Carpal Tunnel Syndrome or in hip replacement surgery. The skill range and implementation required for orthopedic surgeries is very extensive and thus the orthopedic instruments also have to be carefully chosen. The ranges of surgery types that are performed by orthopedic surgeons make the range of instruments required vary extensive as well. Due to this reason, sometimes surgeons have to use extensive instruments like power drills whereas at times they need a very delicate instrument like micro - surgical ones for precise and micro areas. This is why most of the instruments are classified according to their own unique function and are highly specialized.

The most popular category for orthopedic instruments is bone instruments. These instruments are required when the patient's bone has to be removed or cut through. Mostly the ball joints that exist in our skeletal system from our limb or hip require the use of such instruments. This is why these bone instruments are all powered tools. A famous type of bone instrument is the gigli saw, which is basically a long wire that consists of teeth on it, which then attach to its handle. The straight hand saw version is also commonly used as orthopedic instruments. The longer leg bones need to be cut using the gigli saw rather than the straight saw. Lots of other bone instruments also look like huge wire cutters. Orthopedic instruments that are required for performing back surgeries include equipment like rongeur that help in biting away at the small bones. After that, surgeons need to install plates, pins, and screws which are done with the help of automatic drills. Other hand tools commonly used in such procedures include curettes, mallets, screwdrivers, and pliers. These instruments help in skimming off the bone from the surface.

The second most common category of orthopedic instruments includes the tissue instruments. These instruments are also commonly found at other general surgery operating rooms. They consist of common equipment like retractors, scissors, and clamps. To stop the bleeding from vessels, clamps are used. When surgeons have to cut through wire or tissue they need to use scissors. When surgeons need to hold back the patient's muscle tissue so that they can easily work, they make use of retractors. This is how all these equipment in this category of orthopedic instruments is equally important for every orthopedic surgery.

The third most important category of orthopedic instruments includes prosthesis. This device is one of the most commonly used devices in orthopedic surgeries. It has become a routine that patients are now performing joint replacement. For this surgery, prosthesis is very important. Other large power tools are also used in such procedures along with glue that helps to keep the leg bone in place with the prosthesis. All these instruments are crucial to the successful completion of an orthopedic surgery. 

How To Live Long Vibrant Healthy Lives

Becoming conscious about how you live your life, the kind of products you buy and the carbon output of everything you do can help you to make changes for the better; the better of yourself and the world around you that is. As the world becomes more densely populated and we put more demands on its limited resources, there has never been a better time than the present to make those changes. And, it's a lot easier than you think.

Save Water

Making simple changes to your routine, like not running the tap when you brush, your teeth can save a lot of water without even doing much. If you enjoy a shower, put a bucket underneath the faucet to catch the water you waste while you wait for the hot water to warm up; you can use this water to wash your car or water your garden. To make the most of rain showers, get a storage bucket to collect some extra for when the rains dry up.

Stop Using Toxic Chemicals In Your Home

Start reading labels and becoming familiar with what is in your cleaning products; most of them contain really dangerous substances that you probably wouldn't choose to use in your home. Be on the look-out for ingredients like formaldehyde, phenol and triclosan, and stay as far away from them as possible.

Save Power

Converting your home to using energy efficient light bulbs can make a big difference to your utilities bill and lessen your dependence on the grid. Turning up your thermostat by just two degrees can also give you savings of up to eight percent on your power costs. Also, just becoming more aware of the lights you have switched off, and turning them off in rooms that you are not using, can make a big difference to the amount of electricity you consume.

Recycle

Instead of filling landfills with waste, try and recycle paper, glass, tin and plastic. Try and find ways to reuse your own waste and make a concerted effort to purchase products that use biodegradable packaging.

Go Organic

Start buying organic products that have not been grown with chemicals or pesticides, produced by companies that are making an effort to reduce their carbon footprint. Your family will be healthier for it and it will take less of a toll on the environment. Start eating free range eggs and meat, and consider going a day where you do not eat meat, as animals reared for food are some of the biggest sources of methane gas on the planet.

"Why are manufacturers allowed to be so careless with the chemicals that they add to your everyday cleaning, personal and general household products? One theory is that since these products are not consumed, there is a small chance that they will be able to enter your body and cause damage. The problem with this theory is that everything you come into contact with is absorbed by your skin, which means that all of the chemicals you use on a regular basis are accumulating within your body. If you want to rid your household of these harmful chemicals, you need to turn to products that are as natural as possible.

6 Common Misconceptions About The Advanced Healthcare Directive

You may have heard a lot about the importance of creating an advanced healthcare directive whether in the form of instructions or appointing a person, so that the desired line of treatment can be followed if you are not in a position to take your own decisions at a future date. However there are a number of misconceptions surrounding this concept which can put doubts in your mind.

The following will address some of the more common myths about an advanced healthcare directive.

Myth 1 - Only older people need to make an advanced directive

Illness and accidents can happen to anyone old or young; in fact the advances in the medical field may end up keeping a younger person alive for years without any improvement. Ideally any individual above the age of 18 must make a directive or appoint an agent.

Myth 2 - A directive is meant to stop treatment

An advanced directive is prepared to express your wishes and can include directions to stop treatment as well as those to carry on a specific treatment in certain cases. Also you can customize it in a way where invasive treatment may be stopped but certain pain relievers may be administered to ensure comfort.

Myth 3 - Appointing an agent takes away the right to make personal decisions

This is a common fear faced by many and is completely misplaced. Remember that such a directive comes into effect only when you are not in a position to decide for yourself due to a certain health condition. Furthermore when you regain capacity to make decisions you can override the agent's decision and also modify the rights or revoke them completely.

Myth 4 - It is best to wait if you are unsure about the contents of the directive

Everyone has at least a broad idea about the way their treatment should be done incase such a situation arises. Accordingly you must make an advanced directive incorporating your current wishes no matter how brief. The directive can be modified as often as you wish and you may add more specific instructions in the future to make it more effective.

Myth 5 - A completed directive is work done and does not require any further intervention

Preparing an advanced directive is a sensible decision but by no means is your work over. You must communicate and handover a copy to your doctor, and will have to continue such communication if you happen to get transferred to another medical facility or make any changes in the directive so that the new doctor is aware of your instructions.

Myth 6 - A lawyer is needed to make a directive

A lawyer is not necessarily needed to make an advanced directive but can be useful to make one based on their experience. Similarly you can seek assistance from other personnel trained for such purposes by approaching your healthcare provider or through the internet.

You will now have a clearer picture of what advanced healthcare directives are and what they can do for you, thus helping you to create an advanced directive that is useful and effective to your particular case.