Compile an effective career development plan that will significantly advance am individuals career in health administration.
Health administration or healthcare administration is the field relating to leadership, management, and administration of public health systems, health care systems, hospitals, and hospital networks. Healthcare is changing more rapidly than almost any other field. The field is changing in terms of how and where care is delivered, who is providing those services, and how that care is financed.
The healthcare industry is so vast and so important to the well-being of the U.S. economy that it should not come as a surprise that it requires competent administrators able to manage the day-to-day operations of a medical facility, as well as provide leadership to the staff. In fact, healthcare administration shares many similarities with other large-scale business structures that require their mid-level managers and executives to lead, and make difficult decisions when such needs to be done. However, in addition to knowledge of accounting, budgeting, and leadership principles, healthcare administrators also need to have an understanding of the healthcare industry as a whole, and their own role in the complex process of providing medical services to patients.
Begin planning as early as possible for a career in healthcare management. A good scholastic record is important especially if you want to attend a graduate program for a master’s degree or a doctorate. Many schools and colleges in the United States and Canada offer undergraduate degrees with a concentration in health services management.
In the past, most students chose the traditional route of a master’s degree in health administration or public health. Today, however, students are investigating other options, including graduate degrees in business and public administration, with course concentration in health services management. Some schools offer a joint degree-a master’s degree in both business administration and public health, or in both healthcare management and law, for example.
Graduate programs generally last two years and lead to a master’s degree. They include course work in healthcare policy and law, marketing, organizational behavior, healthcare financing, human resources, and other healthcare management topics. The program may also include a supervised internship, residency, or fellowship.
Entry level Healthcare Administration jobs include assistant administrative positions such as operating assistants, marketing assistants, insurance company representatives, and accountants. Graduates of healthcare management programs may obtain jobs as managers and supervisors in smaller organizations, such as physician offices, clinics, and public health or human service agencies.
Prospective health care administrators can find themselves employed at various positions in the sector. Experienced health managers will easily find employment at large hospitals, smaller clinics, group medical practices, nursing homes, medical research labs, and other organizations specializing in providing medical services. In addition, state and federal health agencies including, but in no way limited to the United States Department of Health, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, and the Department of Veterans Affairs are in demand for skilled health care managers, offering a wide range of fellowship and internship opportunities to attract candidates. Finally, they are also sought by various healthcare-related businesses like life and health insurance companies, or international pharmaceutical corporations. Ultimately, the employment possibilities are endless, and individuals that decide to pursue a career in health management will find plenty of room for career advancement.
Required Skills
General management skills
General guidelines
Investigate many educational programs—both graduate and undergraduate—before you make a commitment of time and money. (A list of links to CAHME-accredited graduate programs follows.) Programs vary widely from location to location. Some offer a broad summary of the field, while others provide training in managing specific kinds of organizations.
Develop your people skills. Your success as a healthcare executive will depend on your ability to get along with diverse groups of people: employees, physicians, vendors, governing boards, and the public. Learn how to motivate, negotiate, and manage.
Develop strong quantitative skills. Healthcare executives must understand financial strategies and accounting principles, and they must be able to interpret data.
Stay current on healthcare trends. Be aware of shifting opportunities resulting from changing demographic and reimbursement trends to developments in healthcare policy
Read about healthcare. You can find interesting articles in local newspapers, national magazines such as Newsweek and Time, and trade publications such as Healthcare Executive, Frontiers of Health Services Management, Journal of Healthcare Management, and Modern Healthcare. Visit university libraries.
Learn about healthcare providers. Nearby hospitals, HMOs, and mental health facilities may offer free publications, health fairs, or community health education programs. If possible, tour a facility or participate in a volunteer program.
Be patient and flexible. You may have to relocate to another part of the country to take advantage of a specific educational program or job opportunity.
Identify your career goals and take steps to attain them. Determine your weaknesses and then develop a plan to correct them. Build on your strengths.
Use ACHE resources. The American College of Healthcare Executives provides access to the Directory of Postgraduate Administrative Fellowships, directories of local chapters, and participants in the ACHE Higher Education Network, and many other tools to help you network and develop your career.
Health Care Administration: Educational Requirements and
Available Programs
Over the last several decades, healthcare administration has
developed from an addendum to curriculums required for business
degrees, into its own unique field of study. As a result,
individuals interested in this career path, who may be in the
process of applying to institutions of higher learning, can now
select healthcare administration as their undergraduate major at
many colleges and universities in the United States and Canada.
While the bachelor’s degree in the field is the perfect first step and may result in an employment offer by itself, the sector offers far more opportunities to individuals willing to obtain a post-graduate degree, typically at master’s level. There are several different graduate programs in healthcare management accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Management Education (CAHME) – the accrediting organization for master’s level degrees in healthcare administration in both the United States and Canada. These programs may grant such diverse degrees as the Master of Public Health(MPH), the similar-but-different Master of Health Administration (MHA) and Master of Health Services Administration (MHSA), and Master of Science in Health Policy and Management.
While the above degrees will offer similar opportunities in the field, Master of Health Administration programs tend to concentrate more on the economic and numerical aspects of healthcare management, placing special emphasis on such subjects as accounting, budgeting, cost analysis, and financial planning, how they pertain to individual healthcare facilities. On the other hand, Master of Public Health and Master of Science in Health Policy and Management programs tend to promote a broader approach to the healthcare industry, examining healthcare management not from the point of view of individual medical facilities, but that of entire districts, states, or even countries. However, the majority of the curriculum will overlap, and choosing an MPH instead of an MHA will not disqualify individuals from any employment positions in healthcare administration, but different programs may better prepare them for their future work responsibilities.
Health Care Administration:
Required Certifications
In addition to the above education requirements, many jurisdictions
require certain health care administrators to receive a state
license. Currently, all states have this requirement for
administrators of nursing homes and nursing care facilities, and
some extend this requirement to assisted-living facilities.
However, the majority of graduate programs in health management
offer help to their current students and alumni in obtaining the
required licenses.
Health Care Administration: Getting Started and Moving
Forward
For most individuals, their best route to a successful career in
health care administration path will begin with higher education.
As already emphasized, applicants with master-level degrees will
find more entry-level opportunities, as well as more room for
future career advancement. Given the current demand, many
applicants will find themselves presented with several open
employment positions to choose from. The selection process will
often be influenced by personal beliefs regarding healthcare
management, and some candidates may seek positions at large
hospitals, while others may join one of the public health agencies.
The field offers numerous paths for individuals looking to
specialize, as it does for those that believe in a more general
approach to health care.
However, jobs in health care administration require sacrifice and commitment, and the ability to make tough choices that may not be in the best interest of certain patients, but allow the medical facility under their management to continue providing medical care. Many health care administrators strongly identify with their occupations, spending countless hours working on budget projections, new staff schedules, responding to patients’ requests and complaints, and addressing many other issues commonly brought to their attention. Efficient health care administrators will possess strong analytical and communication skills, have knowledge of current health regulations, and be able to organize and lead the staff.
Conclusion
Health care administration is without question an excellent career
path, given the current demand for healthcare managers, and the
above-average job outlook for the next decade. The wide range of
employment positions all come with reasonably high salaries and
great benefits, and the field offers enormous potential for
advancement to motivated and over-achieving individuals.
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Create a 2-year professional career development plan in which you discuss your goals and plans for achieving them. Include your short- and long-term objectives and goals. Evaluate your present position in relation to these goals by listing your current experience and skills. Identify your strengths and weaknesses and those areas that need further development. Prepare a plan of action to achieve your goals.
create a 2-year professional career development plan in which you discuss your goals and plans for achieving them. Include your short- and long-term objectives and goals. Evaluate your present position in relation to these goals by listing your current experience and skills. Identify your strengths and weaknesses and those areas that need further development. Prepare a plan of action to achieve your goals.
A health care professional wants to determine whether individuals with hypertension who take Atenolol have significantly lower systolic blood pressure than individuals with hypertension who do not take Atenolol. For individuals who have not been prescribed Atenolol, the population systolic blood pressure mean is 165 (µ = 165). The 234 individuals who take Atenolol have an average systolic blood pressure of 147, with a sample standard deviation of 8.47. On the basis of these data, can the researcher conclude that...
A health care professional wants to determine whether individuals with hypertension who take Atenolol have significantly lower systolic blood pressure than individuals with hypertension who do not take Atenolol. For individuals who have not been prescribed Atenolol, the population systolic blood pressure mean is 155 (µ = 155). The 33 individuals who take Atenolol have an average systolic blood pressure of 145, with a sample standard deviation of 24. On the basis of these data, can the researcher conclude that...
A health care professional wants to determine whether individuals with hypertension who take Atenolol have significantly lower systolic blood pressure than individuals with hypertension who do not take Atenolol. For individuals who have not been prescribed Atenolol, the population systolic blood pressure mean is 171 (µ = 171). The 30 individuals who take Atenolol have an average systolic blood pressure of 144, with a sample standard deviation of 23. On the basis of these data, can the researcher conclude that...