The idea of having to work nights and even pull in 10 to 12 hours per shift is enough for individuals to swear off working in the healthcare industry. But the idea of hospitals being cutthroat work environments is slowly changing and Payscale.com supports this claim with its recent survey of jobs with the highest satisfaction ratings. The last five occupations found in that list of top ten happiest jobs were all healthcare related.

Operating Rooms Registered Nurses

RNs that work in operating rooms scored the highest job satisfaction rate among all the medical jobs included in the list with an 81 percent rating. One of the reasons for why OR nurses are some of the happiest hospital workers may be due to the challenging nature of the job. These nurses get to help in various types of surgical operations and every case is always different putting OR nurses on their toes all the time. Unlike what other nurses might feel, there is nothing routine with being an OR nurse.

Physical Therapists

Only second to OR RNs by 1 percent (they have a job satisfaction rating of 80 percent), physical therapists has consistently ranked high in work satisfaction surveys. This could be due to the fact that physical therapists have very normal work schedules and often work with convalescing patients which means that they’re less grumpy than your average hospitalized patient. And for a medical job that allows them to sleep like a regular person, they pay is great.

Athletic Trainers

While athletic trainers have a satisfaction rating of 79 percent, their compensation isn’t as high as compared to other healthcare jobs. But these individuals do get the chance to work with popular athletes and even travel with them, something which may allow these professionals to look past their paychecks. Athletic trainers work with athletes to prevent or treat injuries that come with playing sports. With a growth rate of 37 percent throughout the years 2008 to 2018, there’s a healthy demand for athletic trainers.

Dietitians

Recording a 78 percent satisfaction rating, dietitians aren’t just confined to hospital settings. With society becoming more and more health conscious, it’s normal for households to have their own private nutritionists which has been spurring demand for dietitians.

The only dentistry-related job that made it to the list, the profession has a 74 percent job satisfaction rating. Offering a normal work schedule and projected job growth, being a dental hygienist is one of the most sought after jobs in the entire healthcare sector.