The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts that the field of health care management will grow by 16 percent through 2016, resulting in the creation of 43,000 new jobs in the field. There are many different careers available in the field of health care management, depending on your education level and personal preferences.
The general functions of all health care management jobs are overseeing the business end of a health care practice or institution. This involves creating a budget and managing finances, ensuring compliance with federal and state regulations, and overseeing staff.
Health care managers work in a variety of locations, including small doctors' offices or larger physicians group practices, outpatient care facilities, hospitals, home health care providers, and skilled nursing long-term care homes.
Some health care managers serve as middle management, meaning they focus upon one aspect or department of a health care facility and ultimately report to another, higher-up manager. Others serve as the sole manager for an office or are the chief administrators for an entire facility.
Sometimes small physicians' offices require managers to only hold a high school diploma, but most middle management or physicians' practices prefer applicants with a Bachelor's degree in health care management or administration. Higher-level managers and chief administrators usually hold Master's or Ph.D. degrees in the field.
In May 2008, the average annual salary for health care managers was $88,750, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The lowest-paid 10 percent of health care managers averaged $48,300, while the highest-paid 10 percent earned an average of $137,800.
Job Description for Health Care Management
There's a lot of money on the health care system, and like any other business, health care needs managers to run the...