What Medical and Health Services Managers Do
Medical and health services managers plan, direct, and coordinate the business activities of healthcare providers.
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Work Environment
Most medical and health services managers work in offices in healthcare facilities, including hospitals and nursing homes, and group medical practices.
How to Become a Medical or Health Services Manager
Most medical and health services managers have at least a bachelor’s degree before entering the field; however, master’s degrees also are common. Prospective managers typically have some work experience in an administrative or a clinical role in a hospital or other healthcare facility.
Pay
The median annual wage for medical and health services managers was $100,980 in May 2019.
Job Outlook
Employment of medical and health services managers is projected to grow 32 percent from 2019 to 2029, much faster than the average for all occupations. As the large baby-boom population ages and people remain active later in life, there should be increased demand for healthcare services.
Medical and health services managers, also called healthcare executives or healthcare administrators, plan, direct, and coordinate medical and health services. They may manage an entire facility, a specific clinical area or department, or a medical practice for a group of physicians. Medical and health services managers must adapt to changes in healthcare laws, regulations, and technology.
Duties
Medical and health services managers typically do the following:
- Improve efficiency and quality in delivering healthcare services
- Develop departmental goals and objectives
- Ensure that the facility in which they work is up to date on and compliant with laws and regulations
- Recruit, train, and supervise staff members
- Manage the finances of the facility, such as patient fees and billing
- Create work schedules
- Prepare and monitor budgets and spending to ensure departments operate within funding limits
- Represent the facility at investor meetings or on governing boards
- Keep and organize records of the facility’s services, such as the number of inpatient beds used
- Communicate with members of the medical staff and department heads
Medical and health services managers work closely with physicians and surgeons, registered nurses, medical and clinical laboratory technologists and technicians, and other healthcare workers. Others may interact with patients or insurance agents.
Medical and health services managers’ titles depend on the facility or area of expertise in which they work.
The following are examples of types of medical and health services managers:
Nursing home administrators manage staff, admissions, finances, and care of the building, as well as care of the residents in nursing homes. All states require licensure for nursing home administrators; licensing requirements vary by state.
Clinical managers oversee a specific department, such as nursing, surgery, or physical therapy, and have responsibilities based on that specialty. Clinical managers set and carry out policies, goals, and procedures for their departments; evaluate the quality of the staff’s work; and develop reports and budgets.
Health information managers are responsible for the maintenance and security of all patient records and data. They must stay up to date with evolving information technology, current or proposed laws about health information systems, and trends in managing large amounts of complex data. Health information managers must ensure that databases are complete, accurate, and accessible only to authorized personnel. They also may supervise the work of medical records and health information technicians.
Medical and health services managers held about 422,300 jobs in 2019. The largest employers of medical and health services managers were as follows:
Hospitals; state, local, and private | 33% |
Offices of physicians | 12 |
Nursing and residential care facilities | 10 |
Government | 8 |
Outpatient care centers | 7 |
Most medical and health services managers work in offices.
Work Schedules
Most medical and health services managers work full time. Some managers work more than 40 hours per week. Work during evenings or weekends may be required in healthcare settings that are open at all hours, such as hospitals and nursing homes. Medical and health services managers may need to be on call in case of emergencies.
This table shows a list of occupations with job duties that are similar to those of medical and health services managers.
Occupation | Job Duties | Entry-Level Education | Median Annual Pay, May 2019 | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Administrative Services Managers |
Administrative services managers plan, direct, and coordinate activities that help an organization run efficiently. |
Bachelor’s degree | $96,940 | |
Computer and Information Systems Managers |
Computer and information systems managers plan, coordinate, and direct computer-related activities in an organization. |
Bachelor’s degree | $146,360 | |
Financial Managers |
Financial managers create financial reports, direct investment activities, and develop plans for the long-term financial goals of their organization. |
Bachelor’s degree | $129,890 | |
Human Resources Managers |
Human resources managers plan, coordinate, and direct the administrative functions of an organization. |
Bachelor’s degree | $116,720 | |
Insurance Underwriters |
Insurance underwriters evaluate insurance applications and decide whether to provide insurance, and under what terms. |
Bachelor’s degree | $70,020 | |
Medical Records and Health Information Technicians |
Medical records and health information technicians organize and manage health information data. |
Postsecondary nondegree award | $42,630 | |
Social and Community Service Managers |
Social and community service managers coordinate and supervise programs and organizations that support public well-being. |
Bachelor’s degree | $67,150 | |
Top Executives |
Top executives plan strategies and policies to ensure that an organization meets its goals. |
Bachelor’s degree | $104,690 | |
Purchasing Managers, Buyers, and Purchasing Agents |
Buyers and purchasing agents buy products and services for organizations. Purchasing managers oversee the work of buyers and purchasing agents. |
Bachelor’s degree | $69,600 |
For more information about medical and healthcare management, visit
Professional Association of Health Care Office Management
American Health Information Management Association
American College of Health Care Administrators
For more information about academic programs in this field, visit
Association of University Programs in Health Administration
Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Management Education
For information about career opportunities in healthcare management, visit
American College of Healthcare Executives
For information about career opportunities in medical group practices and ambulatory care management, visit
Medical Group Management Association
For more information about licensure and training requirements for nursing home and assisted-living facility administrators, visit
National Association of Long Term Care Administrator Boards
O*NET
Medical and Health Services Managers
Suggested citation:
Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Outlook Handbook, Medical and Health Services Managers,
at https://www.bls.gov/ooh/management/medical-and-health-services-managers.htm (visited ).