allied and prof

MEDICAL AND ALLIED HEALTH PROFESSION

The medical profession is a group of individuals qualified to practice medicine. Allied health professions, on the

other hand, are lines of work that still deal with healthcare, but are distinct from medicine

Who are the allied health professionals?

•Allied health professionals are healthcare practitioners with formal education and clinical training credentials through certification, registration and/or licensure.

•These professions may be categorized

into either technicians or

Therapists/ Technologists.

Technicians

• are those who undergo training to perform

specific procedures. They are required to work under

the supervision of technologists or therapists.

• This category includes physical therapy assistants, medical

laboratory technicians, radiological technicians, occupational therapy

assistants, recreation therapy assistants and respiratory therapy

technicians

Technicians

Therapists or technologists

• have more intensive training, which includes acquiring procedural skills.

They evaluate patients, diagnose conditions, develop treatment plans, and understand the rationale behind various treatments in order to judge their appropriateness and potential

side effects.

They also assess patients’ responses to therapy and make appropriate decisions about continued treatment or modification of treatment plans. Furthermore, they are licensed to perform these tasks.

Therapists or technologists

Allied health professionals

• a. prevention - keep illness or injury from happening

• b. assessment/evaluation - appraisal of the condition based on the patient’s subjective report

• c. identification/diagnosis - analysis based on signs, symptoms, and laboratory findings

• d. treatment - management and care of a patient or the combating of disease or disorder

e. rehabilitation/habilitation - treatment designed to recover from injury, illness, or disease towards a normal condition as possible

f. advocacy - a method by which patients, their families, attorneys, health professionals, and citizens’ groups can work together to develop programs that ensure the availability of high-quality healthcare for a community


• g. promotion of health and well-being - the process of enabling people to increase control over their health and its determinants, and thereby improving their health

• h. education - the process of sharing and gaining knowledge

• i. research - the diligent inquiry or examination of data, reports, and observations in a search for facts or principles


What are the allied health professions that we presently have in the

Philippines?

• 1. Audiologist – identifies and rehabilitates hearing impairments and related disorders

• 2. Chiropractor - diagnoses and treats neuromuscular disorders, with emphasis on treatment through manual adjustment and/or manipulation of the spine.

3. Clinical psychologist - assesses, diagnoses, treats and helps prevent mental disorders4. Dietitian / Nutritionist - promotes good health through proper diet and treatment of diseases5. Emergency Medical Technician – also known as ambulance technician; responds quickly to any emergency and life-threatening situation to immediately treat serious injuries, physical or mental trauma to increase a patient’s chances of survival

6. Guidance Counselor - assists students with personal, family, education, and career decisions and concerns; also helps them develop job-finding skills and other life skills needed to prevent and deal with problems

7. Health Educator - specializes in health education and promotes the development of health knowledge, life skills, and positive attitudes toward the health and well-being of students

8. Massage Therapist - performs the scientific manipulation of the soft tissues of the body for the purpose of normalizing those tissues; uses manual techniques that include applying fixed or movable pressure onaffected parts of the body

9. Medical assistant – performs, under the direction of a physician, various routine administrative and nontechnical clinical tasks in hospitals, clinics, and other similar facilities10. Medical technologist – performs a variety of tasks on body fluids, from simple blood tests to more complex tests to uncover abnormalities in the body, and underlying causes of illnesses, such as HIV/AIDS, diabetes, and cancer which are not easily detected through physical examination

• 11. Midwife - professionals with the expertise and skills in helping women maintain healthy pregnancies, assist in or perform childbirth delivery, and help in women’s recovery process through the postpartum period

• 12. Nurse - trained to provide care for people who are sick or injured; monitors patients’ health and records symptoms, assists physicians during examinations and treatment, and administers medications.

13. Occupational therapist - uses purposeful activity and interventions to maximize the independence and health of any client who is limited by physical injury or illness, cognitive impairment, psychosocial dysfunction, mental illness, or learning disability14. Orthotist/Prosthetist – makes and fits prosthetics or artificial parts for the human body15. Paramedic - gives emergency medical treatment or assists medical professionals in emergency situations

16. Pharmacist - prepares and dispenses medication prescribed by licensed health professionals; also provides information to patients regarding drugs, and consults with healthcare professionals on advances in drugs or Medicine.17. Radiologic Technologist/Radiographer -healthcare professionals who perform imaging procedures, such as x-ray examinations, Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) scans and Computed Tomography (CT) scans (health careers.org)

18. Physical Therapist - examines, evaluates, and treats physical impairments through use of special exercise, application of heat or cold, and other physical modalities19. Speech Language Pathologist - diagnoses and treats patients with functional and organic speech defects and disorders20. Phlebotomist - professionals with special training in phlebotomy or drawing blood from patients

21. Radiation therapist - administers radiation therapy services to patients and observes patients during treatment; other duties may include tumor localization, patient follow-up, patient education, and record keeping22. Respiratory therapist - specializes in the promotion of optimum cardiopulmonary function and health; regularly deals with various chronic respiratory diseases, such as asthma and emphysema

23. Social Worker - investigates, treats, and gives aid to people with social problems and helps people with mental illness, serious health conditions, financial difficulties, substance abuse problems, domestic or child abuse, unwanted pregnancy and other social problems

Allied medical professions available in other countries

• 1. Cardiovascular technologist - uses imaging technology to help physicians diagnose patients with cardiac (heart) and peripheral vascular (blood vessel) ailments

• 2. Clinical officer - performs general medical duties such as the diagnosis and treatment of disease and injury, recommendation and interpretation of medical tests, performance of routine medical and surgical procedures, and referral of patients to other practitioners

• 3. Dental hygienist - specializes in the removal of calcaneous deposits and stains from patients’ and provides additional services and information on prevention of oral diseases.

• 4. Diagnostic medical sonographist - uses ultrasonic imaging devices to produce diagnostic images, scans, videos, or 3D volumes of patients’ anatomy

• 5. Kinesiotherapist - develops and monitors exercise programs to help people regain muscle strength and function lost due to injury or disease

• 6. Neurophysiologist - specializes in the diagnosis of conditions affecting the nervous system such as neuromuscular diseases, epilepsy, and nerve entrapments

• 7. Medical dosimetrist - designs treatment plans for patients by means of computer and/or manual computation to determine a treatment field technique that will deliver the prescribed radiation dose while taking into consideration the dose-limiting structures

• 8. Medical radiation scientist - performs complex diagnostic imaging studies on patients and plans and administers radiation treatments

9. Music therapist - uses music within a therapeutic relationship to address a client’s needs, such as facilitating movement and physical rehabilitation, motivating the client to cope with treatment, providing emotional support, such as an outlet for expressing their feelings through music

10. Nuclear medicine technologist - performs imaging procedures using radioactive drugs and materials to make diagnostic evaluations of the anatomic or physiologic conditions of the patient’s body, and facilitates therapy with the use of unsealed radioactive sources

11. Orthoptist - investigates, diagnoses and treats defects of binocular vision and abnormalities related to eye movement; involves seeing patients of all ages from infants to the elderly12. Pedorthist - are foot orthotic and orthopedic footwear experts trained in the assessment of lower limb anatomy and muscle and joint function

13. Perfusionist - assists in performing procedures that involve extracorporeal circulation, such as during open-heart surgery or hypothermia

14. Surgical technologist - a member of the surgical team who serves as a scrub technician or as a circulator

generalization

a person who helps identify, prevent, or treat an illness or

disability

Health Care Provider-

generalization

Health Care Practitioner/Provider-

an independent healthcare provider who is licensed to

practice on and provide general and/or specialized care to a specific area of the body.”

generalization

Allied Health Professionals

A trained healthcare provider practicing under supervision of a

physician or healthcare practitioner. They include pharmacists, dental hygienists, physical therapists and

nurses

allied and prof

Education