Graduates who enter the field of counseling can make a vital contribution to saving some of the most valuable workers in the country from burnout. According to Reuters, a 1999 study by the Institute of Medicine - a body that advises the federal government - found that counseling helped to significantly reduce instances of emotional exhaustion and stress among US doctors. In a profession where making the wrong decision because of tiredness, stress or emotional burnout can sometimes mean the difference between life and death for patients, early intervention by counseling can be crucial, the report said. At the end of the year-long research program, which involved 227 medical practitioners, counseling had helped to reduce the number of doctors on full-time sick leave from 35% to 6%, while the number of physicians seeking counseling had risen from 20% to 53%. Counselors can work in a variety of fields from professional and career counseling to education, rehabilitation and relationship work. However, according to the Department of Labor, around 47% of professionals in the field are employed in the fields of health care and social assistance. In 2006, there were 635,000 counselors working in the United States.  |