Healthcare Manager - Career Profile |
Career OverviewHealthcare managers are directly responsible for the supervision, coordination and monitoring of services provided to the patient. This means that the healthcare manager should have a complete understanding of the various services that the hospital or healthcare facility can provide to the client or patient. Monitoring may be done by direct observation, satisfaction surveys or direct patient interactions.
The healthcare manager is the key individual in providing new technology training and incorporating new healthcare systems into existing programs and protocols. They may be required to teach small or large groups of staff on the best possible ways to care for and manage patients while using the appropriate technology to facilitate this goal. The healthcare manager may also need to work with individual staff members that are having difficulty using different protocols or procedures or those that are not correctly handling patient care or other issues.
Healthcare manager often are involved in assessing and improving on out patient care or after treatment follow-ups and consultations. They may work with current staff to complete research and data collection on various aspects of patient care. The healthcare manager may be required to design and implement these research projects, enter and analyze data, and make recommendations for improvement.
A healthcare manager must have excellent interpersonal skills and good written and oral communication skills. They should be able to interact with both patients and staff and have a good background in healthcare procedures and regulations.
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Career RequirementsMost healthcare managers will be required to have a Master’s level certification in business management or healthcare management as well as experience working in the department that they are managing. A smaller hospital or healthcare facility may accept a Bachelor’s level education and substitute work experience for a Masters degree.
In addition to education and experience a healthcare manager should have a good working knowledge of most basic computer programs including Excel, word processing and databases. In addition he or she should be familiar with research design and implementation.
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Job OutlookWith increased demands for efficiency and effectiveness in all levels of healthcare the demand for healthcare managers has increased over the last several years.
The United States Department of Labor indicates that this trend is expected to continue at least until the year 2014. New hospitals and long-term care facilities will further increase the demand for qualified healthcare managers with experience in the field.
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Career TrackHealthcare managers with Masters level education have options to move into middle or upper management of a hospital or healthcare facility after they gain experience. This is the most common route taken by most healthcare managers, but some do specialize in an aspect of technology or business management of hospitals or care facilities and open up consulting businesses or training classes for new staff.
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CompensationMost healthcare managers in the hospital and long-term care areas earn between $60,000 and $80,000 per year, depending on specialization, size of the facility and level of education. Those healthcare managers with a high level of experience, training and specialization may earn over $100,000 per year if they are employed by a large private hospital or treatment center.
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