Healthcare Employment Areas
There are a variety of opportunities available for healthcare leaders with knowledge and experience in strategic planning, finance, marketing, operations, information systems and healthcare regulations and policies. These expertise are essential for the smooth operations, sustenance and growth of the healthcare industry. Within this industry there are a wide range of areas to seek employment, including:
Hospitals and Hospital Networks
Whether working for a hospital or healthcare network, administration encompasses overseeing day-to-day operations. This can entail overseeing clinical units, departments or even an entire hospital or health system. Hospital administrators e
nsure that staff, finances and facility practices align with the policies and procedures in place at their organization. They must stay in the know when it comes to new laws or regulations as well as the latest medicine and technology. Acting as liaisons, they interact with governing boards, department heads and medical staff as needed.
Nursing Homes
Nursing home administrators oversee finances, staff members, admissions and building maintenance at care facilities. In addition to managing nursing homes and administrative planning, they are responsible for implementing policies to ensure aging populations are well cared for. Nursing home administrators are in charge of hiring responsible team members, as well as discharging staff as needed. They also make sure that residents, visitors and staff remain safe and healthy, and make marketing decisions, among other responsibilities. Licensure is required in all states.
Diagnostic Labs
Diagnostic Labs provide analytic or diagnostic services to medical professionals or sometimes directly to patients, under the prescription of a physician. From blood analysis to performing X-rays, a variety of clinical tests are performed at diagnostic labs. Some labs also provide clinical trials and medical device development services. Administrators working at diagnostic labs are responsible for maintaining safety, ensuring labs are well stocked and complying with WHO standards as they relate to bio-waste disposal.
Physician and Dental Offices
Both physicians and dentists can work alone, in groups or in a combined form. Administrators at these offices are in charge of overseeing operations—planning, coordinating and directing service providers; marketing and budgeting; and managing staff members. They might answer phones and schedule patients, assist with insurance claims or deal with complaints. Some offices can be quite large, so this role requires the ability to work in a team environment and multitask.
Public Health Offices
While doctors and hospitals treat sick or injured patients, public health offices work to prevent people from illnesses or injuries, striving to improve the quality of life. Public health offices conduct scientific research, educate people about health and encourage healthy behavior—via speaking engagements, vaccinations, etc. Working in public health could mean tracking disease outbreaks, preventing injuries, speaking out in health matters and sharing medical research with the community.
Rehabilitation Centers
Rehabilitation centers are where people go to recover from physical injuries, substance abuse or mental illness. There are outpatient facilities, those where patients stay overnight and long-term facilities complete with residential areas. Patients could come to these facilities for everything from learning how to walk again to receiving drug counseling. Someone who lives alone might come to a rehabilitation facility to recover from surgery so that they don’t have to worry about cleaning or cooking.
Healthcare Consulting Firms
These firms work alongside healthcare professionals to help them solve both operational and regulatory challenges. This can mean integrating clinical and financial systems, providing clinical advisory services, managing costs and revenues, enhancing patient outcomes, or implementing IT strategies and technologies, security or data analytics. The underlying goal of a healthcare consulting firm is to leverage strategic experience and industry knowledge to improve both hospital and health system performance.
If one of these healthcare employment areas are of interest to you, learn more about the degree offerings that will help you advance in this field.
