Working in the public health sector is about promoting good health and preventing disease. The jobs are extremely varied and range from making sure disadvantaged populations have access to adequate healthcare, to helping governments respond to natural disasters and issuing vaccines in the face of a possible epidemic.
Those considering a career in the field can choose from a wide range of professions, from dentistry, medicine and nursing to education and law. The main difference between most medical care and public health is that the former tends to deal with the health of individual patients and the latter with entire communities and populations.
Many of those employed in the sector aim to educate others, whether it is how to live a healthy life and how to gain access to medical treatment or formulating policies designed to work on a national scale.
The gateway into this part of the health-care system is through one of the many degrees currently available. A nurse working in this sector can expect to earn around C
$60,000 per year.