Need help with trying to obtain visa!

So i'll make this short.

I am Canadian, graduated with a BSc degree in the US. I am currently seeking/awaiting admission in to a Master's level program, and may not get in until Fall of 2013. I have been trying to obtain a visa of some sort for the past 5 years, but unfortunately I can't find an employer to sponsor me, mostly in part because my degree is in the health field and that usually requires special criteria when seeking employment from clinics/hospitals etc.

I do not want to wait until 2013, because my girlfriend is down there and I don't want to wait that long to be with her. So I have been strategizing as a K-1 fiance visa may not be an option right now (gf not ready to get married). I have a very close friend who was a professor of mine, whose daughter is a Medical Doctor who just opened her own practice, and in the same area that my girlfriend resides as matter of fact. I will be a certified phlebotomist in Canada by February of 2012. This will be the only certification I have. The question is.. since this friend of mine owns a private practice and may very well need a trained phlebotomist is it possible for them to sponsor me? Are there any barriers I would have to cross? and which visa would be applicable in that case if it were possible (H1-B or TN or the like?)? Will USCIS decline any type of petition because of the phlebotomist title?

I would also like to note that the area of the practice is in an underserved community, which in terms of posting for jobs may be beneficial to me because there would not be many applying due to low population (?)

Any help/advice would be greatly appreciated. I am long overdue for this.

Thanks!