In this sense, then, health care management is not only an exciting field, but also one that affords its practitioners the opportunity to make a positive impact on the lives of patients and the welfare of a community. And there's nothing more rewarding than that.

Find Healthcare Management Programs

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• Health Care Management
• Health Care Management-Long-Term Care
• Health Care Reimbursement Systems
• Health Care Policy and Ethics
• Health Care Finance
• Health Care Strategic Planning and Marketing
• Health Economics and Public Policy
• Healthcare Operations
• Resource Management
• Principles of Managed Care

Types Of Associate, Undergraduate & Graduate Programs Available
An associate's degree in health care management will provide you with the basic knowledge necessary to pursue the field further. And while it is unlikely that it will lead to a career as CEO of the major hospital in your city or town, it will set you along the path. A bachelor's degree will afford you the opportunity to understand the big picture of the field, as well as the chance to begin specializing and narrowing down your options in regard to the specific area of the field you would like to pursue. And graduate degrees generally lead to either high- end positions in the field or teaching posts at the college level - or often both.

Typical Admissions Requirements
Admission to health care management programs can be competitive because the caliber of student that applies tends to be rather high, and because of the relatively high salary and high esteem associated with the job. However, that does not mean that you will not get into a program, even if you have little or no experience in it. If this is the case, then you will do well to begin with an associate's degree, which will afford you the opportunity to understand the basics of the field. Bachelor's degree naturally follow, and graduate degrees are generally reserved for those who have some amount of experience working in the field or, at the very least, a stellar academic record in a related area.

Careers In This Field
There are many career paths a graduate from a health care management program may pursue, though they generally tend to be administrative- and executive-level positions in large health-care organizations. As such, the following are some of the more popular careers in the field, but they by no means constitute a complete list:

• Finance
• Government relations
• Human resources
• Information systems
• Marketing and public affairs
• Material management (purchasing of equipment and supplies)
• Medical staff relations
• Nursing administration
• Patient care services
• Planning and development

Salary Ranges In This Field
Professionals in this field can potentially earn a great deal of money. However, there are also those who tend to earn less than the hundreds of thousands of dollars that the CEOs of large hospitals and medical organizations make. According to the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics, however, the averages are as follows:

"Median annual earnings of medical and health services managers were $67,430 in May 2004. The middle 50 percent earned between $52,530 and $ 88,210. The lowest 10 percent earned less than $41,450, and the highest 10 percent earned more than $117,990.
Median annual earnings in the industries employing the largest numbers of medical and health services managers in May 2004 were as follows:

• Federal Government: $87,200
• General medical and surgical hospitals: 71,280
• Offices of physicians: 61,320
• Nursing care facilities: 60,940
• Home health care services: 60,320

Earnings of medical and health services managers vary by type and size of the facility, as well as by level of responsibility. For example, the Medical Group Management Association reported that, in 2004, median salaries for administrators were $72,875 in practices with 6 or fewer physicians, $95,766 in practices with 7 to 25 physicians, and $132,955 in practices with 26 or more physicians.

According to a survey by Modern Healthcare magazine, median annual compensation in 2004 for hospital administrators of selected clinical departments was $76,800 in respiratory care, $81,100 in physical therapy, $87,700 in home health care, $88,800 in laboratory services, $90, 200 in long-term care, $93,500 in medical imaging/diagnostic radiology, $94,400 in rehabilitation services, $95,200 in cancer treatment facilities, $96,200 in cardiology, $102,800 in nursing services, and $113,200 in pharmacies.

Salaries also varied according to size of facility and geographic region. According to a survey by the Professional Association of Health Care Office Management, total 2004 median compensation for office managers in specialty physicians' practices was $72,047 in gastroenterology, $66,946 in dermatology, $66,207 in cardiology, $64,543 in ophthalmology, $63,801 in obstetrics and gynecology, $62,545 in orthopedics, $58,595 in pediatrics, $52,211 in internal medicine, $50,924 in psychiatry, and $50,049 in family practice." ( www.bls.gov )

Future Outlook
"Employment of medical and health services managers is expected to grow faster than average for all occupations through 2014, as the health care industry continues to expand and diversify. Job opportunities will be especially good in offices of health practitioners, general medical and surgical hospitals, home health care services, and outpatient care centers. Applicants with work experience in the health care field and strong business and management skills should have the best opportunities. Competition for jobs at the highest management levels will be keen because of the high pay and prestige." ( www.bls.gov )

Resources

1. www.mgma.com (The Medical Group Management Association)
2. www.hfma.org (The Healthcare Financial Management Association)
3. www.healthcon.org (The National Association of Healthcare Consultants)