Healthcare worker

A Healthcare worker (pronunciation: /ˈhelTHˌker ˈwərkər/) is a professional who provides preventive, curative, promotional, or rehabilitative health care services in a systematic way to people, families, or communities.

Etymology

The term "Healthcare worker" is a compound word, combining "healthcare", which originates from the Old English words "hǣlth" (health) and "carian" (care), and "worker", which comes from the Old English "weorcere".

Related Terms

Healthcare: The organized provision of medical care to individuals or a community.
Healthcare professional: A person who is involved in the delivery of healthcare services.
Healthcare provider: An individual or an institution that provides preventive, curative, promotional, or rehabilitative health care services in a systematic way to people, families, or communities.
Healthcare system: The organization of people, institutions, and resources that deliver health care services to meet the health needs of target populations.
Public health: The science and art of preventing disease, prolonging life, and promoting health through the organized efforts and informed choices of society, organizations, public and private, communities and individuals.

Roles and Responsibilities

A Healthcare worker can have various roles and responsibilities depending on their specialization. Some of the common roles include:

Doctor: A healthcare professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining, or restoring health through the study, diagnosis, prognosis, and treatment of disease, injury, and other physical and mental impairments.
Nurse: A healthcare professional who is engaged in the practice of nursing. Nurses are men and women who are responsible (along with other health care professionals) for the treatment, safety, and recovery of acutely or chronically ill or injured people, health maintenance of the healthy, and treatment of life-threatening emergencies in a wide range of health care settings.
Pharmacist: A healthcare professional who practices in pharmacy, the field of health sciences focusing on safe and effective medication use.
Therapist: Professionals who are trained in individual, family, and group psychotherapy, and who are capable of working with people during acute crises.

Healthcare worker