Considering a career in hospital administration? Here’s what you should know about this impactful and rewarding field.
Healthcare administrators play a crucial role in any medical organization. Balancing a career that requires constant compassion and strong leadership skills can be tough but rewarding—in more ways than one. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), employment in healthcare management is projected to grow 32% by 2030. The average salary for these jobs is $104,280 with the highest 10% earning over $195,630.
What Can You Do with a Degree in Healthcare Administration?
With such a wide range of healthcare settings, the career possibilities as an administrator are seemingly endless. Finding the right fit for you isn’t difficult when you’re able to choose from hospitals, doctor’s offices, medical practices, nursing homes, home care agencies and more. Here are just a few examples of what you would be doing in different healthcare settings:
- Hospital administrators are responsible for organizing health services and overseeing day-to-day hospital activities, as well as evaluating hospital employees, creating policies, developing medical procedures and ensuring quality patient services.
- Nursing home administrators supervise the clinical duties of nursing homes by overseeing staff personnel, medical supplies, nursing home patients, admissions and financial matters.
- Clinical managers supervise, recruit and train physician staff, as well as manage the cost of equipment and activities. Clinical managers are given the choice of specializing in a specific department or working as a generalist supervisor.
There are also a variety of careers available outside of the typical healthcare settings. Here are a few more fields that offer competitive salaries for those with healthcare administration degrees:
- Pharmaceutical Industry
- Healthcare Technology
- Consulting
- Regulatory and Policy Organizations (ex. CDC, FDA, etc.)
- Insurance Organizations
Is Healthcare Administration Right for You?
Healthcare administration is the ideal field if you’re passionate about creating a quality environment for patients and staff, but you don’t want to go into medicine itself. In healthcare administration, you won’t deal directly with patients, but the policies and decisions you make will affect the quality of service given by the department. Whether it’s a budget or a quality-of-care issue, being able to recognize how the facility and its patients are being affected is an important skill in healthcare management. A balance of empathy and an organizational mind is key for roles like these.
Managing a department or an entire facility also takes strong interpersonal skills and can be fulfilling work. You will not only be overseeing medical personnel, but you’ll interact with board members and other leaders to make decisions on financial, legal and wellness cases and initiatives. Being a leader in healthcare isn’t quite like being a leader in any other field. If you decide to work in a medical setting, the decisions you make will have an impact on the health and happiness of both your staff and the patients in their care. This is a career that allows you to take charge and make a positive impact on the members of your community.
Being able to manage a field as complex as healthcare can be exciting work once you understand healthcare policy and economics, but this doesn’t make understanding the medical field as a whole any less challenging. Though rewarding, being in a career that balances the technical medical knowledge and managerial skills can be challenging.
Syracuse University’s online Bachelor of Professional Studies (BPS) in Healthcare Administration degree provides you with a foundational knowledge of business, finance, electronic records management, human resources, project management, negotiation and conflict management.
A BPS degree program has fewer general education requirements than a Bachelor of Arts or Bachelor of Science, so you’re able to focus on career-specific skills that will prepare you to make a faster and more influential impact in your field. Syracuse University also offers a 15-credit Healthcare Administration Certificate that can be rolled into your later BPS degree to make the transition that much easier. You’ll not only learn how to navigate the ever-changing healthcare industry with ease and confidence, but you’ll learn how to make a difference in the lives of those around you.
If you want to learn more about how to further your career in healthcare administration, contact an advisor who can guide you towards a fulfilling path.