Health Administration Career Paths
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the healthcare industry overall will generate more new jobs through 2018 than any other industry. Not to mention that 10 of 20 of the fastest growing jobs are in health care.
While the biggest jump is expected in gerontology and home health care, health care administration job seekers will have plenty of options across a variety of fields and work environments. Health care administration degrees and career paths tend to fall into a few general categories: health care administration and management, public health, and informatics.
Below, Rachel George, Chief Operating Officer for Cogent Hospital Management Group, shares her tips for recognizing and avoiding burnout as a healthcare administrator.
Health Administration/Management
Health care administrators and managers can work anywhere from hospitals to clinics, private practices, and nursing homes, among other environments. Administrators and managers are tasked with improving health care services and efficiency within their facilities. Responsibilities can range depending on the position but involve elements of budgeting, planning, overseeing systems, maintaining community outreach and recruiting and managing personnel. Salaries for mid to top-level administrators and managers in health care run an average between $62,170 and $104,120, based on facility size.
Public Health
Graduates in public health focus on community issues in health including improving access to health care, controlling infectious disease, and reducing environmental hazards. Career opportunities are available in many different arenas from local, state, and federal health departments to universities, non-profits and even insurance companies. Those with a degree in public health administration can pursue positions as public health management analysts, health communications specialists, health outreach coordinators, researchers and educators. Depending on the particular position and organization, salaries can vary considerably. For example a public health manager can earn anywhere between $41,000 and $102,000, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Health Informatics
The health care informatics industry is also expected to grow at an above average rate, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Health care informatics is concerned with the organization, storage and maintenance associated with medical data and knowledge, such as patient records. Jobs can be quite technical, like health care information security manager, responsible for implementing and maintaining the technical mechanisms needed to ensure data confidentiality, or more people-oriented, like clinical information manager, responsible for project management and communication with everyone from clinicians to information specialists. Similar to careers in administration and public health, health informatics salaries fall into a wide range, but starting salaries are often between $40,000 and $50,000.
While associates and bachelor’s degrees will certainly get your foot into the door, a masters or doctorate degree can help boost you into a health care industry dream job.
