Health Services Manager

Medical and health services managers plan, direct, coordinate, and supervise the delivery of healthcare. There are two categories of medical and health services managers: specialists and generalists. Specialists oversee a particular department or service, and generalists direct an entire system or facility. Large facilities employ multiple assistant administrators and one top administrator, while in smaller facilities, the top administrator is responsible for most tasks. Managers of clinics have responsibilities ranging from policy implementation to personnel evaluation, while managers of group medical practices work closely with physicians developing business strategies and overseeing daily operations.

Job Skills

Medical and health services managers need to be strong leaders and motivators. They need to possess tact, diplomacy, and flexibility, as well as be open to a broad range of opinions. They must be effective decision makers and have strong communication skills. In addition, they are usually required to be familiar with finance and information systems, and have good data interpretation skills.

Income

In 2002, medical and health services managers earned a median annual salary of $61,370. Earnings ranged from the lowest 10 percent, who earned less than $37,460, and the highest 10 percent, who earned more than $109,080. The following shows the median annual salaries for the industries employing the highest numbers of medical and health services managers:

• General medical and surgical hospitals - $65,950
• Home health care services - 56,320
• Outpatient care centers - 55,650
• Offices of physicians - 55,600
• Nursing care facilities - 55,320

Training and Education

The most common educational background for this field is a master's degree in health services administration, long-term care administration, health sciences, public health, public administration, or business administration. Some entry-level positions only require a bachelor's degree, and on-the-job experience can replace formal educational requirements in some facilities. Undergraduate degrees in business or health administration, as well as related work experience or above-average grades, may help students get admitted to graduate programs, for which competition is usually keen. Graduates of master's programs usually start as department heads or staff employees, while graduates with bachelor's degrees begin their careers as administrative assistants or assistant department managers.

Employment

In 2002, medical and health services managers held about 244,000 jobs. 37 percent worked in hospitals, 17 percent worked in offices of physicians or nursing care facilities, and the rest worked in home healthcare services, Federal government healthcare facilities, ambulatory facilities, outpatient care centers, insurance carriers, and community care facilities for the elderly.

Job Outlook

Between 2002 and 2012, the number of medical and health services managers is expected to increase faster than the average. Physician's offices, home healthcare services, and outpatient care centers will offer particularly good opportunities to candidates. More medical and health services managers will be employed by hospitals than by any other employer, although the rate of increase in jobs will be slower. Growth will be fastest in practitioners' offices and home healthcare agencies. Managers with experience in a specialized field will have the best chances for employment.

Visit our page about Healthcare Management for information on schools and colleges that provide you the training required to become a Medical and Health Services Manager.

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Health Information Technician

Job Duties

Health information technicians organize the medical records and other health information of healthcare patients. Every time a person receives healthcare, a record is generated. This record may include information about symptoms, medical history, x rays, laboratory tests, diagnoses, and treatment plans. Technicians ensure the completeness of medical charts, communicate with physicians to clarify or augment the information, and assign codes to diagnoses and procedures using manuals and their knowledge of diseases. Using computer software, they assign patients to a "diagnosis-related group" (DRG), which is used to determine the amount hospitals are reimbursed under insurance programs. Some health information technicians specialize in this coding process.

Health information technicians analyze medical data to aid healthcare providers in such challenges as improving services, keeping costs down, and completing medical research. Their day-to-day activities depend largely on the size of the facility in which they work. In smaller facilities, credentialed health information technicians often manage an entire department. In larger facilities, technicians usually specialize or supervixe health information clerks and transcriptionists.

Job Skills

Health information technicians need to be able to pay very close attention to detail, as mistakes in their work can have drastic consequences. They should have good eyesight and manual dexterity. They also need to have well-developed interpersonal and communication skills because they often interact with many people during the course of a typical day.

Income

In 2002, health information technicians earned a median annual salary of $23,890. Earnings ranged from the lowest 10%, who earned less than $16,460, to the highest 10%, who earned more than $38,640. The following shows the median annual salaries in the industries employing the highest numbers of health information technicians:

• Nursing care facilities -- $25,160
• General medical and surgical hospitals -- $24,910
• Outpatient care centers -- $22,380
• Offices of physicians -- $21,320

Education and Training

The standard degree for entry-level health information technician positions is an associate degree from a community or junior college. These degree programs usually include courses in medical terminology, anatomy and physiology, legal issues, coding and abstraction of data, statistics, database management, quality improvement methods, and computer science. Some hospitals promote health information clerks to these positions if they have 2 to 4 years of experience and complete an on-the-job training program, although this is expected to become less common.

Technicians who have earned the Registered Health Information Technician (RHIT) designation have a great advantage when it comes to getting hired. In order to earn the designation, a person must graduate from one of the 182 accredited 2-year associate degree programs and pass a written examination. Health information technicians who gain experience can advance later in their careers to become specialists or managers. In larger facilities, experienced technicians may advance to section supervisor. In smaller facilities, they may advance to director or assistant director of a medical records and health information department.

Employment

In 2002, health information technicians held about 147,000 jobs. 37% worked in hospitals. The remainder worked mostly in offices of physicians, nursing car facilities, outpatient care centers, and home healthcare services.

Job Outlook

Between 2002 and 2012, employment of health information technicians is expected to increase much faster than the average. This growth will be the result of an increasing need on the part of regulators, courts, consumers, and third-party payers to examine and scrutinize medical records. The fastest employment growth will be in offices of physicians.

For more information on becoming a health information technician, please see our directory of schools offering Medical Training

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