I want to go into medicine and work with babies. What kind of jobs are there for that?

Hi Anna,

Supervising the health of children requires specific medical training. They're at risk for a variety of diseases, from chicken pox to rubella. And no matter what ails children, they need to be treated in a way that is appropriate to their age and weight. Even the nutritional needs of children are different from those of adults.

As a pediatrician, you may advise parents on taking care of their first baby, diagnose childhood cancer, and recognize the symptoms of an eating disorder. If you become a pediatrician, your impact on the health of children will stretch all the way into their adult lives.

Pediatricians are doctors who care for children from birth to early adulthood. They specialize in diseases and ailments specific to young and growing bodies.

Are You Ready To...?

• Talk to teens about birth control


• Help overweight children start diets to prevent future health problems


• Order tests to confirm your diagnoses


• Give babies their immunization shots


• Treat children for strep throat and other common ailments


• Advise parents on surgical options and refer them to a surgeon


• Spend years studying and training, and a lifetime keeping up with advances in medicine


• Respond to emergencies late at night


• Work closely with other doctors

Make High School Count

Take plenty of challenging math and science classes, including AP® courses in biology, chemistry, physics, and calculus.

Enhance your communication skills through English composition, speech, and drama classes.

Sign up for psychology to learn about human nature and explore the mind-body connection.

Volunteer at a health clinic, hospital, women’s clinic, or eldercare facility.

Diplomatic, sensitive, and an excellent communicator. You’ll need to listen carefully as your patients or their parents describe their symptoms. Recognizing the common threads among childhood diseases and encouraging parents to promote healthy lifestyles is an important part of the job.

In: https://bigfuture.collegeboard.org/careers/health-diagnosis-treatment-pediatricians

Best!

Hi Anna,

I care for babies as a nurse. I started out my career wanting to care for children so sought out employment at a Children's Hospital after graduating from nursing school. Simply by coincidence I was asked to work in an Infant Intensive Care Unit. My interest in the care of babies grew from there. As my career advanced I moved to a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, caring for small, fragile and sick newborns . I now work in a hospital that provides neonatal intensive care along with its maternity unit, caring for both sick newborns and attending the deliveries of healthy babies.

Good luck with your future plans.

Hello. You have several options to work with children within medicine.... Pediatrician (a children's doctor); a Pediatric Nurse; A Pediatric APP ( Nurse Practitioner or Physician Assistant) . Each one of those require different years / levels of training and have different responsibilities.

Hi Anna!

Here are two sites that will tell you much about working with babies:

https://www.care.com/a/jobs-with-babies-15-great-career-options-to-work-with-babies-20150721034503

http://work.chron.com/medical-careers-dealing-babies-16099.html

Send thank you notes to those who help you. Please keep me posted. i would like to follow your progress!