Health Services Manager Career Opportunities
If you work in the healthcare industry, you may have thought about becoming a health services manager. Maybe that’s a job title that could apply to your supervisor? Let’s look at the opportunities for a career in this field and what you have to do to get there.
What a Health Services Manager Does
Almost any professional who works in health and social care could end up as a health services manager one day. That includes doctors, nurses, psychologists, social workers, aged care nurses, physios and counselors.
A health services manager does the planning, directing and coordinating behind the scenes to maintain the smooth and efficient running of a hospital, nursing home, rehabilitation or therapy center, or other health or social care facility. In short, he or she oversees the delivery of a health or social care service.
By the way, according to Postgraduate Futures, the term health and social care covers “systems of care that include medical and healthcare services but also support services to people in the community facing mental health or social disadvantage issues.”
Often, a health services manager was a hands-on healthcare professional who moved into the management field. That’s why the career is open to almost any professional involved in health and social care.
You may be an experienced nurse, for example, who is given responsibility for supervising other nurses. Eventually, you may be put in charge of a team or nursing unit. You do such a good job that you come into the frame to manage in-patient care services at a hospital. It’s possible you could run the entire facility one day!
How to Launch a Health Services Manager Career
While talent, energy and attention to detail are the kinds of qualities that can spur a health services manager career, education is also important.
Since high-caliber healthcare professionals almost always have a degree already, health services manager courses are postgraduate. A common requirement for course entry is that you have a degree, preferably in a healthcare field, along with clinical experience.
Almost any health manager postgraduate course will help you get ahead. By gaining a management qualification, you demonstrate skill development in the field while also signaling that you are ambitious to take on greater job responsibility.
Which Health Manager Course to Choose?
Recommendations for a valued health manager course include a Master of Health Services Management, Master of Health Administration, Master of Health Management, an MBA with a Health major, and a Masters in Nursing.
While there may be little difference between a health management course and a health services management course, look for programs that focus on consumer experience. That’s what the “health services” phrase in a program title may indicate; that the course is orientated towards the experience of the patient, client or facility resident.
A popular philosophy these days in health management training is that a good health manager is consumer focused. The manager ensures the consumer is kept safe and receives a high-quality service. At the same time, the service should be accessible and affordable.
Topics you may study in a health service management course include Management and Organization in Health Care, Strategic Planning and Marketing of Health Care Services, Design and Management of Health Information Systems, Financial Management of Health Systems, and Ethical Decisions in Health Services.
Ultimately, you want to choose a course where the content and instruction approach match your needs and career goals. A good option is to start with a Graduate Certificate in Health Service Management or similar course. Generally speaking, a graduate certificate is a third of a master’s program. You can test the program and gain credits towards a degree by starting with a graduate certificate.
Health Management Service Courses Online
You don’t have any excuse for putting off your education because of the availability of online health services management courses. A good online course is part-time but also accelerated, meaning you can study almost year-round.
With accelerated courses, it’s possible, for example, to earn a Master’s in Health Services Management online within 2 years while working full- time. In fact, that’s a common study pattern. Program participants are generally experienced professionals who want to balance part-time study online with a busy career.
Health services management courses are widely available 100% online. Unlike many other healthcare fields, the management topic doesn’t require clinical or hands-on training. So, students can choose to study online while still gaining the full benefits of an education program.