Attempting to forge a career within the medical profession is a noble act. Many people will assume that you’re either a doctor or a nurse if you tell people at a dinner party that you work in medicine.

While you could have studied at university for six or seven years before becoming a specialist in orthodontics, pediatrics or gastroenterology, you want to embark on another path.

There are plenty of ways you can break into the healthcare profession without going to medical school. Read on to find out if any of these careers peak your interest.

Pilot

While flying for a large commercial airline may see you raking in the money, you want to do something more worthwhile with your talents. Flying may have always appealed, and you can be sure of a varied workload day-to-day within the healthcare profession.

If you take a look at air evac careers, you might be spending one day flying to rescue an injured walker on a hillside, the next repatriating a sick person to their home country and another on emergency callouts taking the most injured patients to ER departments.

You’ll receive basic medical training, be flying a plane and helping those most in need.

Pharmacist

Although you may not have the one to one interaction with patients in a hospital setting, you will be doing a sterling job making sure that those people who can self-medicate at home do so in the safest way.

Your knowledge of drugs, remedies and medicines will be second to none. You’ll understand the best way to fight a cold, the difference between a tickly and a chesty cough, and also be able to spot the signs of those people who need urgent medical attention.

A degree in pharmacy is a lot of hard work, but the financial reward and job satisfaction is well worth the time and effort.

Radiologist

If you are something of a problem solver and enjoy puzzles, then radiology could be the medical area you may want to specialize in. As a radiographer, you’ll get the chance to focus on x-rays and scans, trying to help other doctors and consultants diagnose all sorts of conditions, injuries and illnesses from the images you have taken.

Every day is different, and you could find yourself working in a public hospital, a private clinic or within a sports club, taking charge of the care of professional athletes.

Working within the medical profession is rewarding but can also take a lot out of you mentally and physically. The job is demanding and requires the ability to switch off from the intense emotional situations you may find yourself in.

Caring for others is, on occasion, a thankless task and you’ll have to come to terms with the fact that you will be working for a political football at times.

However, if you stay true to the motivations that made you want to work in a caring profession in the first place, you will have a successful and satisfying career.

This post has been contributed by Ryan Gatt, it may contain affiliate links.