Bright outlook

When students looking toward future careers think of health care, physicians and nurses probably come to mind first. But beyond those are many other rewarding professions offering growing job markets, competitive salaries, job satisfaction, and more.

If students look closely at hospitals, doctors’ offices, clinics, rehabilitation centers, nursing homes, and other health facilities, they will see many other professionals hard at work. They will see physical therapists, occupational therapists, social workers, radiographers, respiratory therapists, speechlanguage pathologists, nutritionists, audiologists, dental hygienists, and others playing important roles in patient care.

ETSU’s College of Clinical and Rehabilitative Health Sciences (CCRHS) provides baccalaureate and graduate degree pathways to many of those professions that comprise the largest portion of the overall health care team, as well as certificate programs in computed tomography (CT), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and sport nutrition.

“Our 13 clinical and rehabilitation programs are among the fastestgrowing and highest-demand health-related programs,” according to Dr. Lynn Williams, Interim Dean of CCRHS. “High job satisfaction, competitive salaries, flexibility in work settings, and the ability to help patients live better lives all contribute to reasons students choose a health care profession.”

Williams does not find it surprising that six of the college’s offerings are listed in the U.S. News & World Report 2022 “Best Health Care Jobs.” These are speech-language pathology, respiratory therapy, physical therapy, occupational therapy, nutrition, and audiology.

Professionals in all of these fields are in high demand, Williams said, as they account for up to 60% of all health professionals according to the National Society of Allied Health. She added that the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics projects all of the fields of study offered by the college to grow between 13 and 32%.

“These health care professionals make a significant contribution to health systems and the communities in which they work,” Williams said. “Graduates of our programs have a 100% job placement rate. They graduate and become a distinct group of health professionals who work in a variety of clinical and educational settings to deliver direct patient care, rehabilitation, diagnostics, and interventions to restore and maintain optimal physical, sensory, psychological, cognitive, and social functions.”

Students readily recognize some of those, like Physical Therapy or Speech-Language Pathology, but other programs like Respiratory Therapy and Nutrition are in high demand, as well.

“The biggest thing we do is everything breathing. We keep people breathing,” said Donna Lilly, Assistant Professor and Director of the Respiratory Therapy Program. “Most people think doctors and nurses run the ventilators that make sure the patients ventilate. They don’t. Respiratory therapists turn the buttons to determine how deep the patient breathes, how fast they breathe, how much oxygen they get.”

Respiratory therapy is projected to grow 23% by 2030, and the median pay is $61,830, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Outlook Handbook And while the typical entry level of education is an associate degree, Lilly says a bachelor’s degree like that offered by ETSU qualifies graduates to run blood gas labs, teach, and move into supervisory roles.

Nutrition majors may become registered dietitians and find clinical work in health care settings, school nutrition, sports nutrition or corporate health, while some go into medical school, physical therapy or other fields, according to Mary Andreae, Assistant Professor of Nutrition.

“There’s a variety,” said Andreae. “There are a lot of areas where people can fine-tune their love for nutrition and working with people.”

The job market for dietitians and nutritionists is expected to grow by 11% by 2030, and the median pay is $61,650 annually, according to the Occupational Outlook Handbook.