How to Become a Medical Program Manager

Recently, we discussed why healthcare administration is such an important process for any medical organization and we explained what jobs you can get after earning your Master’s Degree in Healthcare Administration.

Today, we’ll explain how you can use your degree to get one of the best jobs in the industry, the position of a medical program manager.

Medical program managers provide the foundation for medical facilities to operate successfully, as they are responsible for a wide variety of tasks, like budgeting, development of treatment plans, site-wide schedules, and more. 

In this post, we’ll explain why you should consider becoming a medical program manager, what your main job responsibilities would be in this role, and what you can do to increase your chances of success as you begin your career in the field.

After you’ve read about how to launch a successful career as a medical program manager, fill out our information request form to receive additional details about our 100% online Master’s Degree in Healthcare Administration, which is the perfect program for anyone looking to break into this competitive industry.

If you’re ready to get started, submit your application today.

What is a Medical Program Manager, What is Healthcare Administration and Why are They Important?

Healthcare administration is the process used to manage and oversee various types of healthcare programs, systems, hospitals, and other medical facilities. 

Many of these facilities are run by medical program managers who use healthcare administration best practices to ensure that their programs and operations are running smoothly. 

Some specific examples of using healthcare administration include:

• In Hospital Departments – Large hospitals have many different departments that each have their own agendas and needs. Healthcare administrators are responsible for ensuring that they all work cohesively for the benefit of the greater organization.
• In Community Health Centers – These smaller health centers were built to fill the gaps that major care delivery systems can’t always reach. Healthcare administration techniques are used to ensure that these facilities run smoothly, while also remaining financially successful.
• In Urgent Care Clinics – In stressful, high-pressure situations, healthcare administration best practices and procedures ensure that the staff can react quickly to problems and adapt to constantly shifting priorities.

As the list above shows, healthcare administration principles are used in a variety of different types of medical facilities, and program managers are largely the ones responsible for ensuring the success of these medical programs. 

Is Becoming a Medical Program Manager a Good Career Option?

Yes, the position of medical program manager is an excellent career option for anyone interested in effectively and efficiently running large-scale medical programs within various types of medical facilities. 

There are three compelling reasons to think about becoming a medical program manager, including:

1. Demand for medical program managers is expected to grow significantly over the next decade, with the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reporting that employment of “Medical and Health Services Managers” (a similar role) will rise by 32% between 2020 and 2030.
2. As a medical program manager, you will get the chance to do something very positive and fulfilling by working on incredibly important healthcare projects focused on successfully delivering healthcare services to people who need them.
3. Incomes can be high for this role, as the BLS reported the 2020 median salary for “Medical and Health Services Managers” was $104,280 per year. 

If you’re interested in a healthcare-focused career and you want a career doing something rewarding in a high-growth industry, then the role of a medical program manager may be the perfect position for you.

What Do Medical Program Managers Actually Do?

Medical program managers are responsible for overseeing medical programs, which means that they may be involved in a variety of different functional tasks, including assignments like:

• Assessing the needs of current medical programs and properly assigning program tasks to particular staff members.
• Receiving status reports on medical programs from employees and properly allocating resources if programs begin to fall behind. 
• Actively identifying roadblocks or challenges programs may encounter and finding creative solutions to ensure programs finish on time and on budget.
• Working with senior executives on determining which medical programs should be pursued further.
• Overseeing the financial health of various programs, keeping them within budgetary constraints, and reporting progress to leadership.
• Collaborating with other medical program managers to accomplish overarching strategic goals and help other programs achieve success.

As a medical program manager, you could be responsible for a variety of complex tasks, but you can expect that they will revolve around ensuring medical programs achieve intended goals while staying on schedule and under budget.

Because of the critical work you will be doing, you will have to ensure that you are fully prepared to handle large workloads and deliver results in a constantly changing environment. 

What Skills & Abilities Are Needed to Become a Successful Medical Program Manager?

This is a challenging role that requires several important skills, including a variety of different hard and soft skills.

According to Zippia.com, anyone looking to become a medical program manager will want to consider developing the following skills:

1. Strategic Planning Skills – As a medical program manager you might be responsible for leading the development of new clinical programs, which includes developing internal processes, coordinating with facility executives, and cultivating relationships with external business partners.
2. Data Analysis Skills – To properly implement new medical programs and oversee existing ones you will have to interpret large amounts of data to ensure that programs progress on time and that quality metrics are consistently being met.
3. Research Skills – All new medical programs will have to operate within industry laws and regulations, and as a medical program manager, you will have to perform accurate research to understand these compliance measures.
4. Presentation Skills – Presenting program performance and progression to the executive leadership team could be an extremely important part of your job as a medical program manager, so you need to be able to create clear and concise presentations that convey the current status of programs.
5. Financial Skills – As a medical program manager you might be responsible for large budgets, so to be successful in this role you will have to understand proper budgeting techniques and strategies so that you can play a part in ensuring programs remain financially viable.

If you don’t possess these skills right now, don’t worry, as you can develop them by completing a degree in the field, like CSU Global’s Master’s Degree in Healthcare Administration.

Our 100% online program was designed to give you the tools you need to build a successful career in healthcare administration, and the skills you develop in that arena apply perfectly to working in this industry.

Do I Really Need a Degree in Healthcare Administration to Get a Job in the Industry?

Not necessarily, but getting your Master’s Degree in Healthcare Administration could significantly increase your odds of getting one of the best jobs in the industry. 

First, if you don’t already have a bachelor’s degree, you should consider getting one in a related field, like business management or healthcare administration.

CSU Global’s Bachelor’s Degree in Healthcare Administration and Management and our Bachelor’s Degree in Business Management are perfect options for anyone who is looking to get into healthcare administration, but who still needs their bachelor’s degree.

And if you already have a bachelor’s degree, but want to maximize your chances of success as a medical program manager, then we suggest completing our Master’s Degree in Healthcare Administration.

This program is your best option for launching your career as a medical program manager, as it’s specifically designed to provide you with all the skills you need to become a successful healthcare administrator.

Finishing the MHA degree will show employers that you have the foundational knowledge, skills, and abilities needed to succeed in this highly competitive and complex industry, which should help improve your marketability for medical program manager jobs.

How Will CSU Global’s MHA Help Prepare me for a Career as a Medical or Healthcare Program Manager?

Whether you already have some experience in program management or you’re starting from scratch, earning a degree in healthcare administration is going to significantly help improve the likelihood of landing a successful job in the industry.

Our online Master’s Degree in Healthcare Administration is designed to help you handle the many responsibilities you will have as a medical program manager, including traditional healthcare administration tasks like:

• Creating resource plans and schedules to ensure programs are staffed appropriately and important deadlines are met.
• Communicating the status of medical programs, as well as challenges or possible issues that could lead to problems or require complex solutions.
• Leading cross-functional teams to help execute medical program objectives and keep operations running efficiently.
• Reviewing and organizing data sets to understand program performance and determine if any corrective action needs to be taken.

You are likely to use these essential skills throughout your career as a medical program manager, but these skills apply to virtually every job in healthcare administration, so you can rest assured that they’ll be of value no matter what specific job you choose to pursue after graduating.

In short, our Master’s Degree in Healthcare Administration will give you the foundational knowledge employers are looking for while helping you to develop the important skills you need to become a successful medical program manager.

To accomplish these ends, we’ll train you to:

• Objectively collect and analyze data to gain a clear picture of the performance from various medical programs, and to use this data to find areas for improvement.
• Effectively lead diverse teams in fast-paced and high-stress environments, which applies to nearly all healthcare industry jobs.
• Understand current healthcare laws and regulations to guarantee medical programs meet quality guidelines and remain in compliance with industry-wide regulations and legal requirements.
• Review other business areas, such as finance, marketing, operations, and HR to understand how different fields impact program performance.
• Create high-level strategic plans to align program objectives with overall facility goals and performance metrics.

This foundation in healthcare administration will allow you to understand what needs to be done to ensure that any medical programs you manage are helping connect with the organization’s larger, strategic objectives.

Accordingly, earning your degree with CSU Global could be the defining action needed to help you launch a successful career in this challenging, competitive, but exciting industry.

What Else Can I Do to Increase My Chances of Success?

Completing a degree in healthcare administration is a great way to prepare for a successful career as a medical program manager, but it’s not the only thing you can do to tilt the odds in your favor.

Completing a certificate related to healthcare or project management is another excellent way to help build the relevant skills and abilities employers are looking for, while also strengthening your resume to help you stand out from others applying for the same medical program manager jobs. 

According to Zippia.com, anyone looking to break into this field should consider the following certificate:

• The Project Management Professional (PMP) certificate from the Project Management Institute (PMI).

To be clear, completing a master’s degree or certificate program may not be essential to becoming a medical program manager, but if you are looking to differentiate yourself from others in this highly competitive industry, then you should consider pursuing these sorts of educational opportunities.

Should I Get My Degree in Healthcare Administration Online?

Yes, whichever degree or certification you decide to pursue, we recommend completing them online as compared to in-person for several reasons.

The most significant reason to begin your degree online is that it’s a much more efficient way to get your degree, as online classes allow for much more flexibility than in-person programs.

The ability to study from anywhere and at any time is a massive benefit to studying online, but CSU Global’s 100% online programs come with several other significant advantages, including:

• No requirements to show up at set times or in physical locations.
• Monthly class starts.
• Accelerated courses.

Our students report that these benefits have been incredibly useful for helping them remain on track with their education without interrupting other important obligations such as work and family tasks. 

If you’ve already got a busy schedule, but want to further your education, then you’ll want to consider studying with us. 

Why Should I Choose CSU Global’s Healthcare Administration Program?

Our online Master’s Degree in Healthcare Administration was designed to provide you with all the important skills and abilities you need to start a successful career as a medical program manager. 

This program is regionally accredited by the Higher Learning Commission, which guarantees that your degree will be recognized and respected by healthcare professionals, and it’s earned top rankings, including: 

• A #2 ranking for Best Online Master’s in Healthcare Administration from Best Health Degrees.
• A #5 ranking for 25 Best Affordable Online Healthcare Administration and Management Degree Programs 2020 from Affordable Schools. 
• A #5 ranking for the 5 Best Master’s in Healthcare Administration Online from Best College Reviews.

CSU Global itself is also incredibly well respected in the higher education industry, having recently won several excellent rankings, including:

• A #10 ranking for Best Online Colleges for ROI from OnlineU.
• 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.

Finally, we offer affordable tuition rates, and a tuition guarantee that promises your low tuition rate won’t increase as long as you remain enrolled with us.

To get additional details about our fully-accredited online Master’s Degree in Healthcare Administration, please give us a call at (800) 462-7845, or fill out our Information Request Form.

Ready to get started today? Apply now!