Healthcare is one of the fastest-growing industries in the world.
In America, there are over 14.3 million people employed in the industry. An extra 3.2 million new healthcare-related jobs are expected to be created in the next 8 years!
This is great news if you’re looking to join the healthcare management profession. But which field will you specialize in?
Healthcare management encompasses such a wide variety of career options. It is easy to get overwhelmed by all the different opportunities.
To help make things simpler for you, we’ve broken down a few of the careers in healthcare management.
This list will help you take the first steps in your healthcare management career.
Working Environment
Healthcare Management professionals can work in a variety of different places.
This career has many specialty branches, so no two jobs will be the same.
You may work at a facility like a hospital, nursing home, or rehabilitation center. You may end up working in an outpatient facility like a clinic or physician’s practice.
Some healthcare management employees spend their day in front of a computer. Others run between meeting and organize things at a much more hands-on level.
With so many options available, you are sure to find a specialty that you are passionate about.
Health Care Administrator
Healthcare administrators work behind the scenes to ensure operations run smoothly. Also known as health service managers, they do not deal directly with patients. Instead, they oversee patient services, coordinate staff meetings, and maintain schedules.
Health Care Administrators also play a role in long term planning. They assist in the creation of new policies and the implementation of new medical treatments.
Healthcare administrators need a healthcare management degree and strong managerial skills. A good understanding of how healthcare facilities function is also important.
Health care administrators gain a wide range of skills. This is a great position to launch your career in healthcare management. Jobs in this field can include anything from middle management to CEO positions.
Finance-Based Positions
Do you have a keen business sense and enjoy working with numbers? You might enjoy the financial side of healthcare management.
Financial managers are responsible for the day-to-day financial operation of a healthcare organization. This includes contract reviews, cash flow management, budget implementations, and staff compensation.
An efficient Financial manager may be promoted to the Chief Financial Officer position. The CFO manages an organization’s financial risk and ensures cost-effective operation. They provide financial reports to upper management and construct long term financial solutions.
Another career option is as a Healthcare Actuary. Most healthcare actuaries work for insurance companies.
Actuaries analyze healthcare data with the aim of minimizing liability costs. They interpret medical patterns, prepare rate files, and analyze healthcare trends. This helps the actuaries to determine future financial plans.
The analysis results also influence the cost of healthcare premiums.
Department Director or Manager
Department managers and directors assume responsibility for a specific department or team. They are responsible for ensuring that their department runs at optimum efficiency.
They supervise staff members and coordinating with other departments. They are also responsible for creating development strategies and overseeing departmental budgets.
Specific duties will vary depending on which department you are assigned to.
Promotions within this line of work can help you to become Hospital CEO.
The Chief Executive Officer manages the entire hospital. Their duty is to ensure that the hospital is run as efficiently as possible.
The CEO reports to the board of directors.
A master’s degree in Healthcare Administration or Healthcare Management is required for this position.
Quality and Improvement Manager
The quality and improvement manager ensures that the required care standards are met. They make sure that their facility offers effective and efficient care to patients.
They also analyze data to identify areas of concern and develop improvement strategies.
Quality and improvement managers may be asked to create presentations of their findings. They also conduct training workshops and seminars to improve staff performance.
Professor or Researcher
As the Healthcare Management industry grows, more employment and degree options become available. This creates a bigger need for educators in this field.
Individuals with years of skills and experience are ideal candidates to become professors. They can share the knowledge they have gained over the course of their careers. This can be done online, or on campus.
This training will greatly benefit the next generation of healthcare management students.
Professor and Researcher positions are only available to individuals with sufficient experience. A high degree of education, preferably at a doctorate degree, is also required.
Youngsters aiming to become professors should consider tutoring positions.
Those who wish to wish to enter the field of academia, but aren’t too keen on teaching, can become researchers. Medical research moves at a fast pace. This allows healthcare management researchers the opportunity to discover new trends and be at the forefront of medical technology.
Specialized Consultant
Once you have gained sufficient experience, you can work as a consultant. This allows you the freedom to choose your working hours, travel time, and income.
As a consultant, you will travel between various healthcare facilities. Here you can educate their staff members, analyze their processes, and improve practices.
Consultants will need a high level of education and many years of experience. This allows them to adequately assess and inform each practice that they visit.
Healthcare Information Specialist
People who enjoy computer studies and IT can specialize in this area of healthcare management. Simply study a health informatics or healthcare information management degree. This allows you to become a Healthcare Management Information Specialist.
This is one of the more specialized jobs in healthcare management.
A Healthcare Information Specialist maintains and secures hospital and patient records. They are required to stay up to date with medical technology as well as federal and state laws.
There Are Careers in Healthcare Management to Suit Everyone
As you can see, careers in healthcare management cover a broad range of skills and activities. There is bound to be an option within this career field to suit your interests.
Which healthcare management position would you like to specialize in? Comment below and let us know!
