Medical Social Network News: Job Growth

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Wednesday, September 17, 2014

Healthcare Professional Jobs: Not All Require a Bachelor’s Degree

By Rick Fromme

That’s no B.S. (I mean Bachelor of Science degree).

As the title of this article unequivocally states, regardless of your circumstances, if you’re currently unable to pursue a bachelor’s, or more advanced degree, in hopes of working in the healthcare industry, I have good news for you. You don’t need to obtain a bachelor’s degree to get a good and well-paying job in the healthcare field today (and tomorrow). Don’t get me wrong, I’m all for higher education. But pragmatically speaking, there are millions of financially rewarding, challenging and vital jobs in this industry for those without a four-year degree. Interested? Read on …

“Pre-baccalaureate healthcare workers make up a large share of the healthcare workforce and should be seen as an asset in providing high-quality, cost-effective healthcare,” affirm the authors of a major report that was recently prepared for the Brookings Institution.

Photo credit: brookings.edu

The in-depth report examines and discusses the size, characteristics, and job outlook of medical jobs
thatemploy numerous healthcare workers who have attained an associate’s degree and/or other non-four year baccalaureate degrees. The report adds, “The training and skills of healthcare workers in supportive and assistive roles are central, yet often overlooked in generating quality care and patient satisfaction.”

For those not familiar with the organization, the Brookings Institution is a private, nonprofit organization devoted to independent research and innovative policy solutions. Based in Washington, DC, its mission is to conduct high-quality, independent research and, based upon its findings, to provide innovative, practical recommendations that advance three broad goals:

Strengthen American democracy

Foster the economic and social welfare, security and opportunity for all Americans

Secure a more open, safe, prosperous and cooperative international system

The Brookings Institution is consistently ranked as one of the nation’s most influential, most quoted, and most trusted think tanks. So when it recently issued an in-depth report about the future of healthcare jobs, it definitely caught my attention.

Report Findings

Photo credit: thebestdegrees.com

As stated in the report, “Partof the Solution: Pre-Baccalaureate Healthcare Workers in a Time of Health System Change,” which was prepared for the Metropolitan Policy Program at Brookings, healthcare occupation jobs continue to make up a large and growing percentage of the national workforce. (Of course, I’ve talked about this on several occasions before, check out previous blogs such as, “HealthCare Jobs Outlook is Jammin’!” and our ongoing “A Day in the Life” series.) The report estimates that 12 million jobs, or about nine percent of all workers in the U.S. economy, are currently employed in the medical and healthcare industries.

And, as I’ve noted in the above-mentioned blogs, that number will continue to rise, in part due to America’s changing age demographics profile, as more Baby Boomer continue reach their “Golden” and “Twilight” years ― some in better health than others. Also, the enactment of the ACA/Obamacare plays a role as well (read the blog “ObamaCare Aware.”) The Department of Labor projects that healthcare occupations will evince strong growth between 2012 and 2022, adding nearly three million more jobs.

And here’s the kicker, according to the report: “Specifically, occupations in which substantial shares of workers have less than a bachelor’s degree are growing the most and the fastest. These include home health aides, nursing aides, personal care aides, licensed practical and vocational nurses, medical assistants, registered nurses, physical therapist assistants/aides, diagnostic medical sonographers, occupational therapy assistants/aides, and dental hygienists …

“While many discussions of the changing healthcare workforce focus on doctors, and other professions with advanced degrees,” the report’s findings continue, “workers with lower levels of education make up a large share of the healthcare workforce and carry out functions critical to an effective healthcare system. The training and skills of healthcare workers in supportive and assistive roles are central yet often overlooked in generating quality care and patient satisfaction.”

Photo credit: thebestdegrees.com

In fact, the detailed report estimates that those in the ten largest pre-baccalaureate healthcare occupations total 3.8 million. These account for nearly 50% of the total number of healthcare jobs in the U.S.’ 100 largest metropolitan areas. Here are the report’s top ten pre-baccalaureate healthcare occupations within the U.S.' largest 100 metropolitan areas (2009-2001):

Nursing, psychiatric, and home health aides (includes home health aides, psychiatric aides, nursing assistants, and orderlies)

Registered nurses

Personal Care Aides

Licensed practical and licensed vocational nurses

Health practitioner support technologists and technicians (includes dietetic technicians, pharmacy technicians, psychiatric technicians, respiratory therapy technicians, surgical technologists, and veterinary technologists and technicians)

Medical assistants

Dental assistants

Diagnostic-related technologists and technicians (includes cardiovascular technologists and technicians, diagnostic medical sonographers, nuclear medicine technologists, radiologic technologists, and magnetic resonance imaging technologists)

Clinical laboratory technologists and technicians (includes medical and clinical laboratory technologists and medical and clinical laboratory technicians)

Emergency medical technicians and paramedics

Photo credit: upstate.edu

In non-metropolitan areas, the number of pre-baccalaureate worker was even higher; the study found that this group of (more “suburban” and “rural”) healthcare workers make up nearly 61% of all workers in healthcare.

Additional Key Points

“Educational attainment varies considerably among workers in pre-baccalaureate healthcare occupations, and earnings largely track education. Pre-baccalaureate RNs and diagnostic technologists and technicians typically have associate’s degrees or other post-secondary educational experience and have the highest median annual earnings (full-time, year-round) of pre-baccalaureate healthcare workers, at $60,000 and $52,000 respectively. By contrast, about half of personal care aides and nursing, psychiatric and home health aides have a high school diploma or less, and post median annual earnings of $21,000 and $25,000, respectively.

“Pre-baccalaureate healthcare workers in the 10 largest pre-baccalaureate healthcare occupations are racially and ethnically diverse and overwhelmingly female.

Photo credit: myfreephotoshop.com

“The number of jobs held by pre-baccalaureate workers in the 10 largest pre-baccalaureate healthcare

occupations increased at a faster rate than jobs held by similarly educated workers overall, but the largest growth was among lower-paying pre-baccalaureate healthcare occupations, and only registered nurses experienced real earnings growth between 2000 and 2009-11.

“The size and nature of the pre-baccalaureate healthcare workforce varies by region, reflecting demographics and healthcare industry mix.”

Looking for a Great Medical Job? Check out MedMasters.com

In this article, I provided a summary of a recent, key report issued by the Brookings Institution on the current and future state of America’s healthcare industry jobs. The report found that a strong percentage of healthcare workers are non-baccalaureate degree holders, and it furthermore affirmed these jobs are ― and will continue to be ― an indispensable component of the U.S.’ healthcare delivery system. If you found this article useful, please feel free to click “Like” as well as share and repost it. If you have any questions or comments, as always, I’m eager to read them.

Rick Fromme combines entrepreneurial enthusiasm with an insider's knowledge of the medical industry to co-found MedMasters.com. Both his drive and perspective helps provide health care professionals with a superior mechanism with which to communicate, network and market their strengths. Prior to founding MedMasters.com, Rick operated a highly successful medical device distributorship. Other milestones in his 12-year career in the medical industry include a key position at a medical device start-up company that was later sold to the Ethicon Endo division of Johnson & Johnson. You may also reach Rick by connecting with him on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, LinkedIn and YouTube.

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Tuesday, August 19, 2014

Healthcare Careers: A Day in the Life of a Healthcare Administrator

By Rick Fromme

In today’s ever-increasingly complex world of healthcare delivery, skilled Healthcare Administrators are essential in overseeing and managing a wide range of medical facilities. They’re in large part responsible for the facility’s overall efficiency and ensuring it consistently delivers expert patient care. Healthcare Administrators plan, direct, coordinate, and supervise the delivery of healthcare. They deal with the integration of healthcare delivery systems, technological innovations, an increasingly complex regulatory environment, restructuring of work, and an increased focus on preventive care. The healthcare administrator job description is constantly evolving to adapt to a perpetually changing environment. It’s a challenging job, but one that can be rewarding both personally and financially.

Postive Job Outook

Just like numerous jobs in the clinical aspect of healthcare (i.e., physicians, physician assistant, ARNPs, physical therapists, dentists, etc.), according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the job outlook for Healthcare Administrators is also projected to increase; projecting a 22% growth in this field over the next ten years. Those who have strong business management skills and usually an advanced degree, such as having graduated from an MBA program specializing in Healthcare Management will prove to be the best candidates for this multifaceted leadership role.

Various Work Environments

In addition to the hospital or medical center’s principal CEO, large medical facilities usually employ several assistant administrators who aid their top administrator and execute a variety of tasks. Assistant administrators often direct activities in clinical areas such as nursing, surgery, therapy, medical records, or healthcare IT. They may be in charge of recruitment or — especially in today’s evolving legislative/regulatory environment — be assigned as a liaison to the government.

In larger facilities, hospital administrators (and their staff) serve as liaisons between governing boards,
medical staff, and department heads. They also ensure the activities of all departments are integrated, so they’ll function synergistically. They must also adhere to policies set by a governing board of trustees and regulatory entities.

Likewise, in these larger environments, clinical managers have training or experience in a specific clinical area and, accordingly, have more specific responsibilities than do generalists. For example, directors of the robotic surgery department are experienced this innovative field, perhaps having undergone specialized training with the device’s manufacturer. Clinical managers establish and implement policies, objectives, and procedures for their departments; evaluate personnel and work quality; develop reports and budgets; and coordinate activities with other managers.

Kaweah Delta Medical Center office along Mill Creek (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

In smaller facilities and group practices, administrators are in charge of more of the day-to-day operations. For example, in a fairly large group practice that may involve several medical doctors, physician assistants, nurses, medical assistants, clerical and marketing staff, healthcare IT, etc., the healthcare administrator will oversee the operations and performance of this varied personnel. Depending upon their professional arrangement, a healthcare administrator in these types of practices may focus predominately on operational and business affairs, leaving policy decisions up to the physicians in the group.

Requisite Skills

Regardless of whether they’re in charge of a clinical area or the management of a healthcare facility, a variety of business and management skills are mandatory in order to establish long-range planning, the creation of operating objectives and annual budgets, and establishment of an overall system for the efficient implementation of medical services. The ability to create and understand detailed financial reports, managed care contracts and major expenditures are necessary, as is the ability to structure and administer administrative policies. In a clinical setting, this may also include detailed procedures and protocols for patient care.

Healthcare is constantly evolving. Consequently, Healthcare Administrators are tasked with defining andmaintaining the quality of care being provided and do it as efficiently as possible. The healthcare administrator needs to adapt to:

The various ways care is delivered
The technology deployed
The regulations that must be followed
The changing work environment
The increasing role of preventative care
The evolving federal laws pertaining to healthcare delivery (i.e., changes in ACA, Medicaid, Medicare)

In larger healthcare practices and facilities, Healthcare Administrators oversee such areas as:

Nursing
Surgery
Internal medicine
Medical records
Information systems
Human resources
Finance
Facilities and material
Patient admissions

Because healthcare administration has its hands in many functions of healthcare delivery, it can be a very challenging position. Working conditions vary. Oftentimes, 40+ hour work weeks and being on call are the norm. Especially since many large facilities have 24-hour health care services, its administrative staff must be available when certain issues occur.

This is in line with the overall growth of health care and many of the delivery roles. The median salary is noted as $90,000, 000 per year. This can vary dramatically based on the degree, experience and size of facility.

Educational Requirements

Images of custom amirugami, an amirugami graduate in cap and gown. Self-made. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

To be qualified to work in healthcare administration it is advised to obtain and Bachelor’s or master’s degree. A Bachelor’s in Healthcare qualifies applicants to work small group practice or individual departments. A master’s degree and previous professional experience is required to work in larger practices, to be in charge of multiple departments, or to head up a major medical entity. However, depending upon the situation, if one is already degreed and trained in a specific clinical area such as nursing, pharmacy or medical technology, then a sometimes Bachelor’s degree in Health Care Administration may be sufficient.

It’s also possible to specialize. For instance, there are separate degrees available in Healthcare IT, (see our previous blog, “A Look Inside Healthcare IT Jobs”) Accounting and Finance, and Human Resources. These degrees would prove beneficial when seeking employment in larger facilities such as a regional medical center.

Be forewarned that like many top tier clinical medical careers, being a Healthcare Administrator is a demanding, multifaceted job. But for someone who is passionate about health care and wants to employ their business acumen for the betterment of patients and the myriad healthcare personnel who serve them, healthcare administration can be a satisfying and rewarding career path.

In this article, I discussed the roles and responsibilities of a Healthcare Administrator. I explained many of the areas of
oversight for which Healthcare Administrators are responsible. I also pointed out some of the various workplace environments for Healthcare Administrators and provided information about educational requirements to enter the in-demand, but challenging field. If you found this article useful, please feel free to share it with your colleagues and others. If you’d like to leave a comment, please do so below.