The associate degree in health services prepares you for a rewarding career as a fitness trainer, and occupational, physical and massage therapy aides. You will learn how to provide quality care and how to enrich the quality of living of those you care for. The degree can be customized for a specific area of study. The curriculum and credits needed vary depending on the field of study the student wishes to pursue.
The student will be prepared to work in hospitals, medical centers, physician's offices, mental health and clinic settings, long-term health care centers, managed care centers and retirement and nursing homes. The associate degree in health services can be applied to the bachelor's degree at participating colleges.
The health service degree combined with a specific area of study opens doors in personal training, medical transcriber, health records management, and nutrition, diet and health coordination and as a physical therapy aide. Depending on how you set up your health services associate degree, you could use this degree as part of your training to become a medical assistant, certified nursing assistant or a nurse.
Required courses for a health services degree include Introduction to the Health Care System, Health in the Community, Health Promotion and Risk Reduction, Management of Health Services Organizations and Issues in Health Care Delivery. You also need to take Counseling Process in Human Services and Health Economics.
You will need to take written communication, Introduction to Psychology, Introduction to Sociology and Mathematics as defined by the school of choice. Keep in mind that many colleges title their courses differently, but the courses teach the same fundamentals needed to obtain the associate degree in health services.
Depending on the specific field of study will determine other courses needed. For a medical assistant you will need Medical Terminology, Computing for Healthcare, Medical Office Insurance and Finance, and Medical Assistant Clinical.
Health unit coordinator requires course in Medical terminology, Health Unit Coordinator Procedures 1 and 2, Healthcare Computing and Principles of Customer Service in Healthcare.
For a medical administrator specialist and Transcriptioist you will need to take Drug Terminology, Document Formatting, Body Structure and Functions, Medical Transcription I and II as well as some specific courses outlined by each individual college.
Careers in Health Services
After obtaining your associate degree in health services, you will be ready for a career as a medical coder and billing specialist in a doctor's office or in a hospital or medical care facility. You will also have potential for working as an assistant in massage, physical or occupational therapy. You could find work as an administrator of a doctor's office recording patient health records or managing an office setting.
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Including Associate, Bachelor & Masters Degrees
