Ambulance drivers are responsible for transporting patients from an emergency situation to a hospital or other health facility. Many are required to have the requisite training to perform emergency medical procedures as part of the emergency medical team

Emergency management directors plan and direct disaster response or crisis management activities, provide disaster preparedness training, and prepare emergency plans and procedures for natural (e.g., hurricanes, floods, earthquakes), wartime, or technological (e.g., nuclear power plant emergencies or hazardous materials spills) disasters or hostage situations.

EMT’s assess injuries, administer emergency medical care, and extricate trapped individuals. They transport injured and sick persons to medical facilities.

Paramedics are highly trained emergency medical technicians (EMT) who are responsible for providing care to accident victims. The paramedic profession combines and builds upon the skills of an EMT-Basic and an EMT-Intermediate.

A gerontologist studies the physical, cognitive, social, emotional, psychological, and societal effects of the aging process on the human body. Gerontologists are health care professionals who specialize in working with elderly patients. They provide their services to people in nursing homes, senior citizen centers, and other similar facilities.

Medical assistants perform administrative and certain clinical duties under the direction of a physician. Duties may include scheduling appointments, maintaining medical records, and billing and coding information for insurance purposes. Clinical duties may include taking and recording vital signs and medical histories, preparing patients for examinations and drawing blood.

Physician assistants provide health care services under a physician’s supervision. They perform tasks that are usually performed by doctors. They conduct physical exams and provide treatment, and counsel patients. Physician assistants may prescribe medications.

Clinical nurse specialists (CNSs) plan, direct and coordinate the daily patient care activities in a clinical practice. CNSs ensure adherence to clinical policies, protocols, regulations and standards.

Informatics nurse specialists explore how technology, computers and research influence the practice of nursing.

Licensed Practical Nurses (LPNs) provide care to sick, injured, recovering or disabled patients and may be supervised by a registered nurse. LPNs administer prescribed medications or start intravenous fluids, noting times and amounts on patients’ charts. They also observe patients, note changes in a patients conditions and take basic vital signs like blood pressure and temperature . Providing care also may include dressing wounds, treating bedsores, sterilizing equipment and supplies.

A nurse administrator creates work schedules, gives performance reviews and develops work policies. Other job duties include keeping up established ethical and legal standards for job performance, attending administrative personnel meetings and developing new employee training. Most of the work of a nurse administrator is done in an office and not on the care floor, so an administrator has little or no direct contact with patients. A nurse administrator may work in a hospital, nursing home, private doctor’s office, home health care organization or urgent care facility. Nurse executives are the top leaders responsible for leading overall nursing operations.

Nurse anesthetists prepare and administer anesthesia, monitor patient’s vital signs, and oversee patient recovery from anesthesia. CRNAs may assist anesthesiologists, surgeons, physicians or dentists.

Nurse midwives diagnose and coordinate all aspects of the birthing process. Midwives may work independently or as part of a health care team. Nurse midwives may provide preventive care to women.

Nurse practitioners diagnose and treat both sudden and long-term conditions. They may do physical exams, physical therapy or order tests and therapies for patients. NPs order, perform or interpret results of blood tests, EKGs and X-rays. They use these tools, along with patient symptoms and medical history to develop the right diagnosis.

Nursing assistants provide basic care to patients under the direction of a nurse. Nursing assistants help patients eat and bathe. Nursing assistants may dress, groom or move patients. They give medications or treatments and answer patient calls, apply clean dressings or bandages under the direction of a nurse or physician.

Instructors teach about nursing in classrooms and clinical settings. Nursing instructors lead, develop and organize teaching programs. They keep informed about developments in the field of nursing and may collaborate with other faculty to address teaching and research issues.

Psychiatric mental health nursing is a specialty within nursing. Psychiatric mental health registered nurses work with individuals, families, groups, and communities, assessing their mental health needs. The PMHN develops a nursing diagnosis and plan of care, implements the nursing process, and evaluates it for effectiveness.

Registered nurses (R.N.s) care for sick and injured patients. Registered nurses will assess patient health problems and needs, develop and implement nursing care plans, and maintain medical records. Registered nurses monitor and record patients’ conditions and report any changes to physicians. They maintain detailed reports, record vital signs, and order, interpret and evaluate tests to identify and assess patients’ conditions and work closely with patients and their families.

A cardiovascular technologist assists with the diagnosis and treatment of heart issues. They conduct tests on pulmonary or cardiovascular systems of patients for diagnostic purposes. They may conduct or assist in electrocardiograms, cardiac catheterizations, pulmonary functions, lung capacity, and similar tests.

Medical dosimetrists use training in anatomy, physics and radiobiology to calculate effective radiologic treatment doses for cancer patients, while minimizing side effects.

Electroencephalogram (EEG) technicians, also known as electroneurodiagnostic (END) or neurodiagnostic technicians, are individuals who use specialized machines to monitor the electrical activity of a patient’s brain in order to observe and diagnose irregularities such as strokes, epilepsy and multiple sclerosis.

Perfusionists assemble, operate and monitor equipment that keeps oxygen-rich blood pumping through the circulatory system. When cardiac surgeons perform open-heart surgery, they rely on a perfusionist to operate machinery that continues to pump oxygenated blood through the patient.

A sterile processing technician operates and maintains steam autoclaves, keeping records of loads completed, items in loads and maintenance procedures performed. They clean instruments to prepare them for sterilization, record sterilizer test results, organize and assemble routine or specialty surgical instrument trays or other sterilized supplies, filing special requests as needed. They also examine equipment to detect leaks, worn or loose parts or other indications of disrepair.

Surgical technologists assist surgeons, anesthesiologists, registered nurses (R.N.s) and other surgical personnel with surgical procedures. They help ensure patient and operating room safety, as well as the functionality and sanitation of surgical equipment.

Respiratory therapists work under a physician’s supervision to take care of patients with lung problems. The patients might have chronic asthma or have suffered a heart attack, stroke or other disease or illness.

Respiratory therapy technicians assist respiratory therapists with monitoring patients and performing diagnostic tests.