I bet that you have never considered hospital jobs as something appropriate for teenagers, but nevertheless, we provide you here with the list of the best healthcare and hospital jobs for 16 year olds. Even though hospitals usually hire people older than 18 with appropriate degrees, practice and certificates, there are some jobs which can be done by those who are younger. Hospitals are also expected to employ those who are well trained to work with patients, but inexperienced 16 year olds can find similar jobs too.
Hospitals have to follow very strict laws, so, consequently, teenagers have to behave in accordance with these laws and they have to obey them. In this way, they can avoid finding themselves in some awkward or difficult situations. Nobody wants to be asked to treat a bleeding wound if they are not educated or trained for that. The worst thing that might happen to you is to pass out in a ward full of patients and nurses.
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We know that every 16-year-old teenager dreams about having a well-paid job, but at this age, you should be prepared to do a lot of volunteering if you choose healthcare as your employment. Volunteering is actually a good starting point and preparation if you decide to do healthcare jobs in the future. As a volunteer, you are not expected to have a high education or to take on a lot of responsibilities. On the other hand, you can learn a lot and gain a lot of practice. Once you gain the necessary experience, you might start getting some payments. Options are numerous since there are various positions to start from, some of which include those in nursing homes, care centers, elderly care and others.
To make this list, our research can start from those who are willing to employ a 16-year-old with no working experience. In the beginning, they tend to find out what kind of an employee you are, so the first jobs you get usually do not involve any contact with patients, but the help in providing necessary supplies, providing extra blankets or water and providing updates for patients’ families. Although it is not highly possible, you can also be employed within the first line of patients’ support, meaning as a nurse assistant or additional help in the surgical room.
There is always an option to work in small offices and practices where an extra pair of hands is always needed, so it is a good idea to find those where they are willing to employ a 16-year-old. Bear in mind the fact that you still attend school and that this should be a part-time job. If you want to work in a hospital and nowhere else, then you might also consider finding a job in a canteen or a café at the hospital. There you can still be in contact with patients and their families and you are a part of everyday conversations which are most often related to medicine. You are also in contact with people working at the hospital who can give you great recommendations if you decide to continue working in the same field in the future and you can choose one of the jobs from our list of 16 Best Healthcare Jobs for High School Graduates with no Experience.
When a serious institution like a hospital employs a teenager, it is expected to do some tests beforehand, to carry out drug testing and require recommendations from the high school the teenager attends. You should get prepared for this procedure, but there is no need to worry about it. Working in a hospital and in healthcare will provide you with a lot of knowledge and a completely new life experience. It will also teach you how to deal with tough situations and work with people in special circumstances. What you learn can later be used in everyday situations; it can be a significant piece of information in your CV when you need a recommendation for a future job, or, if you decide to study medicine, this is definitely the best way to prepare yourself.
Concerning all the above mentioned, we needed to make considerable effort to make a list ofbest healthcare and hospital jobs for 16 year olds. We checked Quora and Vinted, which are forums, specialized for teenagers’ jobs, and compared their answers with the answers on a similar question somebody asked on Yahoo Answers. Eventually, we did not only make a list, but we also ranked the jobs according to the number of times they were mentioned on those forums. Now you can stop wondering which the best healthcare and hospital jobs for 16 year olds are. We have found that out for you.
6. Nurse assistant
Although we are sure that hospitals would not allow teenagers to come into patient, operating or emergency rooms, there are, however, some who have been lucky enough to get this chance and who have shared their experiences while working in these positions on Yahoo Answers. Being a nurse assistant implies assisting silently. You stand by; add the necessary instruments or sheets and you only sometimes talk to patients. Those who are particularly lucky get paid for this job, but this depends on the state you live in and the legislation concerning the employment of teenagers.
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5. Doctors’ office
If you are particularly interested in working with patients and learning as much as you can about medicine, you could try to find a job at a private doctor’s office in your neighborhood. In this way, you would be able to choose among various jobs, from being a nurse assistant to filling documents and answering phone calls. You could also learn about medicine from your employer and be in contact with patients and their families. It is necessary to be concentrated, patient and calm when a tough situation happens. The experience you get by doing some of these jobs is actually very useful to prepare yourself for working in any type of offices. Now, let’s see what else do we have on our list of best healthcare and hospital jobs for 16 year olds.
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4. Delivery/laundry/cleaning
There is no hospital which does not need an extra pair of hands when it comes to delivery, laundry or cleaning that rank 4th on the list of best healthcare and hospital jobs for 16 year olds. Even though hospitals usually have workers at these positions, they are usually responsible for a whole range of tasks, so another person, even a teenager, could be very helpful on some occasions. Although dealing with laundry and possibly food and water delivery might be very boring at first, after a while you could be promoted to a nurse assistant or any other position related to patients and doctors. Be patient and do your best to show that you are a responsible and reliable worker.
3. Dietary Aide/Kitchen
This might be a difficult job on our list of best healthcare and hospital jobs for 16 year olds for a teenager, but, on the other hand, it does not involve taking on a lot of responsibilities. Your job is usually to prepare ingredients to be cooked, chop onions or carrots, wash salad or cut bread. In some hospitals, you could also be partly responsible for providing necessary supplies, but only in counting the food delivered or putting it on shelves. It would be great if you could serve or distribute food to patient rooms, but, beforehand, you need to prove you are a responsible and reliable person deserving the job.
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2. Hospice and nursing home
You can easily find a job in every nursing home in your neighborhood. Working with the people who are seriously ill (or are dying) and need a special care is a significant experience in the process of growing up and becoming mature. You will not be responsible for patients and their care unless you are properly trained and prepared to deal with those situations. Your tasks will most often be to provide company for those elderly people and be someone they can talk to. This should be easy and very simple to do. That’s why it ranked so high on our list of best healthcare and hospital jobs for 16 year olds.
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1. Receptionist
Even though this job is not particularly related to healthcare, it includes helping patients’ families, giving information, answering phone calls, and in some cases emergency room triage and collecting the first pieces of information about a patient’s stage. A great advantage of this job is a chance to be promoted to those jobs closely related to patients or the job of a nurse assistant. Receptionists are always well informed about patients and their condition, so they can learn a lot about medical diagnoses too. In addition, you can always continue being a receptionist at various other institutions and include this experience in your CV for a future job, so this job is in the first place on our list of best healthcare and hospital jobs for 16 year olds.
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