What Does a Healthcare Administrator Do?

Recently we explored the questions, “What is healthcare administration?”, and “How to become a healthcare administrator?”, and here we’re going to review what healthcare administrators do each day.

This review will cover the common job roles, work duties, and daily responsibilities of professionals working in healthcare administration. We’ll also review the details of typical job functions for both entry-level and management-level positions in the field.

But first, let’s make one thing clear: “Healthcare Administrator” may be a typical name for a bachelor’s or master’s degree program, but it is not a common job title. 

Instead, professionals working in healthcare administration are much more likely to hold positions with more specific titles, like:

• Practice administrator.
• Clinical IT application support.
• Managed care specialist.
• Medical and health services manager.
• Managed care director.
• Hospital HR manager.

As you may be able to surmise from the list of job titles above, the roles and responsibilities of individual healthcare administration personnel can and do vary, oftentimes quite substantially depending on their specific position.

This is especially true when comparing duties between entry-level positions vs. management-level roles in the field.

Accordingly, this post will include information to help you understand what types of work duties those who earn a Bachelor’s Degree in Healthcare Administration and Management may be asked to do, versus the duties that someone who earns a Master’s Degree in Healthcare Administration may be asked to complete.

We’ll also explore whether or not healthcare administration is a good career, we’ll explain how to properly prepare yourself to be successful in the field, and we’ll suggest how to pick the right school if you do choose to pursue a degree in healthcare administration.

When you’ve finished reading this post, fill out our information request form to receive additional details about CSU Global’s 100% online Healthcare Administration programs, or if you’re ready to get started, submit your application today.

Typical Healthcare Administration Roles & Responsibilities

Healthcare administration is an enormous field with hundreds of potential positions available to those with a bachelor’s or master’s degree in the subject, and different jobs in the industry are likely to come with dramatically different requirements, functions, roles and responsibilities.

However, while there is a great deal of difference in what any one specific healthcare administration professional may be doing compared to any other, many positions are going to require a common set of basic tasks, including responsibilities like:

• Improving the quality of healthcare service delivery.
• Understanding healthcare policy, laws, and regulations, and interpreting and strategizing for how changes to them will impact their organization.
• Reviewing financial budgets and managing operational costs, determining how to retain profitability without sacrificing quality of care.
• Organizing healthcare facility records, and maintaining confidentiality, security, and accessibility.

But before we explain the duties and responsibilities of healthcare administrators in detail, let’s first briefly explain what healthcare administration and management actually is so that you can get a better feel if it’s the right industry for you.

Healthcare administrators are the employees responsible for the daily operation of healthcare companies, non-profits, and other healthcare organizations, and you can think of them as the people who handle the bulk of day-to-day operations.

This is why healthcare administration is such an important field of study, as virtually every organization directly involved in healthcare services delivery needs responsible, reliable, and professional individuals trained in best practices to ensure that they’re able to deliver high quality healthcare services, while also remaining profitable.

Clearly, healthcare administrators are essential employees to healthcare organizations, as they’re the individuals responsible for delivering healthcare services and driving organizational success. 

Now that you know a little bit about what healthcare administrators are, and why they’re so important, let’s look at what they actually do on a day to day basis.

What Do Healthcare Administration Professionals Really Do?

Healthcare administrators are leaders in the healthcare industry, as they are the individuals healthcare organizations rely on to make difficult decisions, strategizing how to drive profitability without sacrificing the quality of healthcare delivery and results, which is no easy task.

To serve as an effective healthcare administrator, you’re going to need a strong foundation of competencies in a range of business skills, as well as in-depth knowledge and awareness in an array of healthcare topics.

First, you’ll need to be educated on a series of important business areas, including:

• Management, supervision, and decision-making.
• Policy and communication.
• Project management.
• Strategic planning, operations, and finance.

Second, you’re going to want to develop a detailed understanding of the U.S. healthcare system, especially in the different facets of the way that health services are delivered in the U.S., including some critical processes like:

• Quality assurance.
• Risk management.
• Insurance.
• Ethical, legal, and regulatory issues.
• Other practices essential to managing in a healthcare environment.

The reason it’s so important to develop such an impressive array of both business and healthcare competencies is that the common roles, tasks, and responsibilities that healthcare administrators may be asked to complete on a daily basis include elements from both disciplines, like:

• Evaluating existing healthcare management industry and organizational practices.
• Critiquing areas of healthcare finance, policy, and operations management, including understanding and being able to overcome ethical, and strategic dilemmas.
• Analyzing the impact of population health, information systems and technology trends on patient outcomes.
• Leading teams of healthcare professionals who will rely on you to make difficult, but incredibly important decisions while carefully considering organizational goals and values.

As the list above demonstrates, healthcare administrators may be asked to do very different things depending on their specific role within their organization.

However, two skill sets that are clearly incredibly important for healthcare administration professionals are making good decisions and providing effective leadership, on both the business and healthcare side of things.

Is Healthcare Administration a Good Career?

Yes, healthcare administration is an excellent field for establishing a long-term career, especially since the industry continues to grow at a rapid pace.

In fact, the BLS recently estimated that employment for medical and health services managers is likely to grow by 28% between 2021 and 2031. 

Compared to the average growth rate for all occupations, which is just 4%, this is clearly an industry that is growing exceptionally quickly.

By studying healthcare administration in an academic setting, you will develop the critical job skills and knowledge required to understand how the healthcare industry actually works, as well as how to keep healthcare organizations profitable, which should set you up for long-term career success.

Graduating from a bachelor’s or master’s degree program in healthcare administration will position you to pursue a variety of challenging, yet rewarding roles in the industry, including jobs at private or public corporations, nonprofit organizations, or state or federal government agencies.

How Can You Get Into Healthcare Administration?

While you don’t necessarily need a degree in healthcare administration to secure a job in the field, having legitimate academic credentials does tend to make it easier to land a good job, especially if you’re looking to serve in a more senior or management-oriented role.

If your goal is to become a healthcare manager or executive and you’d like to build a lifelong career supervising important projects and teams of healthcare personnel, then you will almost certainly want to study healthcare administration best practices in a serious academic setting.

Getting your degree in healthcare administration is not just one of the best ways to prepare you to find success in the field, but also one of the best ways to prove that you are trained, capable and ready to provide value to any healthcare organization from day one.

What Jobs Can You Get With a Bachelor’s Degree in Healthcare Administration and Management?

CSU Global’s online Bachelor’s Degree in Healthcare Administration and Management will prepare you to succeed in this fast growing industry, ensuring that you’ve developed a solid foundation in a range of business skills and healthcare systems, so that you’re ready for roles like:

• Practice administrator.
• Clinical IT application support.
• Medical staff credentialing analyst.
• Managed care specialist.
• Program manager.
• Hospital HR generalist.

Keep in mind that this is just a very short list containing a few of the many different jobs a bachelor’s in healthcare administration would help prepare you to assume.

What Jobs Can You Get With a Master’s Degree in Healthcare Administration and Management?

Choosing to earn your Master’s Degree in Healthcare Administration means you’ll be eligible for more leadership and management-oriented roles in the industry, including positions like:

• Medical and health services manager.
• Administrative services manager.
• General and operations manager.
• Practice administrator.
• Medical staff credentialing analyst.
• Managed care director.
• Program manager.
• Hospital HR manager.

Again, this is only a quick list of a few of the more common roles that graduates from master’s programs in healthcare administration would qualify for holding.

In reality, earning either your B.S. or M.S. in healthcare administration is likely to qualify you for a very large variety of different job titles. 

Why Should You Consider Studying Healthcare Administration at CSU Global?

CSU Global’s Bachelor’s Degree in Healthcare Administration and Management, and our Master’s Program in Healthcare Administration are both excellent options for developing the skills, abilities, and knowledge needed to pursue a successful career in the field.

Both of our programs are regionally accredited by the Higher Learning Commission and widely respected by industry professionals.

Alumni from both programs also report excellent real-world results following the completion of their program—with graduates from our B.S. in Healthcare Administration and Management program seeing an average salary increase of 39% one year after graduation, and graduates of our Master’s Program in Healthcare Administration reporting that their median salary four years after graduating is 30% higher than the national average for all master’s degree holders.  

Our healthcare administration programs also rank exceptionally well, with several top 5 rankings for each program, including:

• For our B.S. in Healthcare Administration: A #2 ranking for Best Online Bachelor’s in Healthcare Management from Online Schools Center.
• For our M.S. in Healthcare Administration: A #4 ranking for Top Online Master’s in Healthcare Administration from Best Master Programs.

Furthermore, CSU Global itself has also recently received several important rankings, including:

• A #1 ranking for Best Online Colleges & Schools in Colorado from Best Accredited Colleges.
• A #1 ranking for Best Online Colleges in Colorado from Best Colleges.
• A #10 ranking for Best Online Colleges for ROI from OnlineU.

Finally, CSU Global offers competitive tuition rates and a Tuition Guarantee to ensure your rate won’t increase while you’re enrolled, thus saving your time and money.

To get additional details about our fully-accredited, 100% online healthcare administration programs, please give us a call at 800-462-7845, or fill out our Information Request Form.

Ready to get started today? Apply now!