There’s no shortage of demand for qualified and passionate healthcare professionals eager to step into challenging positions within hospitals, clinics, home health agencies and other institutions serving patients. Over the next ten years, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) expects employment of medical and health services leaders to grow by 28 percent — a much faster rate than the average growth for all occupations.
The online Master of Business Administration (MBA) with a Healthcare Administration Specialization program from Southern Illinois University Edwardsville (SIUE) prepares graduates to take on the unique role of healthcare administrator. With expertise in financial management and regulatory policy enforcement, healthcare administrators can lead their organizations to greater heights.
Duties of a Healthcare Administrator
Healthcare administrators are crucial to the success of the organization they serve. They are expert communicators and understand how to respond to the needs of employees across the healthcare setting.
Their responsibilities include hiring and scheduling new staff members, managing patient health records and ensuring financial statements align with their employer’s budget, according to Indeed. Depending on the organization type, administrators may also appeal to government agencies and local companies for more funding to improve their facilities.
They also carefully study new state and federal laws that affect employees. Examples include tracking amendments to existing healthcare regulations or preparing the organization for how a new law will impact data management and patient cybersecurity.
Administrators are especially skilled at translating complicated legal terms into digestible information that healthcare employees of differing experience levels can understand and implement. Because this job requires training other healthcare professionals on the ins and outs of new policies, the ability to connect with small groups and large audiences through public speaking is highly valued.
Experience with technology is also a key skill for many healthcare administrators. Technical expertise allows administrators to make operations more efficient and teach others how to streamline patient services with new software as it becomes available.
Job Opportunities for Healthcare Administrators
Healthcare administrators serve in various work environments, such as hospitals, nursing homes, home health agencies, government health departments, health insurance providers and pharmaceutical companies. Some potential career paths include surgical scheduling coordinator, health information manager, billing manager and clinic administrator.
Job openings in the field are also steadily increasing. The BLS expects 54,700 openings for medical and health services managers each year over the next decade, thanks to a need to replace workers moving to different jobs or leaving the labor force.
To ensure graduates flourish in this rapidly expanding field, SIUE’s online MBA with a Healthcare Administration Specialization features a Managing Organizational Change and Innovation course. The curriculum focuses on learning the ropes of managing planned organizational changes effectively, such as new policies and regulations.
A thriving healthcare administrator needs to be fluent in the language of healthcare finances, including the cost of medical procedures and fee payments, so they can clearly communicate issues to staff and patients. Their job requires producing reports and tracking financial trends within the organization, including any problems with insurance reimbursement.
In the program’s Health Care Financing course, students pick up the skills to ensure their organization stays within budget and implements best practices for private and public insurance systems. Healthcare professionals also learn how to contain costs from the perspective of patient care providers, insurance companies and employers.
Pursue Healthcare Administration Through Southern Illinois University Edwardsville
In a constantly innovating profession, healthcare professionals can look to SIUE’s online MBA with a Healthcare Administration Specialization program as a playbook for successful healthcare management. The coursework produces graduates ready to adapt to the needs of any organization.
Learn more about Southern Illinois University Edwardsville’s online MBA with a Healthcare Administration Specialization program.
