Do you have a passion for healthcare, as well as an aptitude for leadership and administration? Do you desire to make a difference in many lives, without providing direct patient care? Are you goal-oriented, organized, a strong communicator, and an effective team builder? A healthcare administration career may be for you.

Healthcare is a thriving field – and you do not have to be a nurse or a surgeon to get involved. Today, there are many administrative positions available within the healthcare sector. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), careers within this field are projected to grow a major 20 percent from 2016 to 2026, much faster than the average for all occupations.

With the large baby-boomer population now aging, and with the general people remaining active later in life, the demand for healthcare administration stays high. On top of a growing need for physicians, nurses, medical procedures, and healthcare facilities, there are “greater needs for managers who organize and manage medical information and healthcare staff.”

If you’re ready to start your healthcare administration career path, your first step will be attaining a college education. The BLS states that most medical and health services managers in this field have at least a bachelor’s degree. Healthcare employers across Connecticut typically prefer candidates who also have relevant training and coursework in their dedicated field.

We know because we asked. As a healthcare administration school in Connecticut, Goodwin College has connections with a network of top healthcare facilities in the state. Through our health science program, you can select a concentration of healthcare administration and learn from industry experts exactly how to run and manage a healthcare facility. We also have a career services team who can help you land an entry-level healthcare administration career, upon completing your bachelor’s degree.

Here are the some of the healthcare administration careers that Goodwin grads can pursue:

1. Medical Office Manager

Healthcare is happening, meaning a lot goes on in a medical office! Patients are constantly going in and out. Doctors, nurses, and medical assistants are always bustling about. Record keeping, health insurance claims, laboratory testing, and patient examinations are steadily in full-swing. Like with any organization, there must be someone to keep track of it all, to keep the medical office running smoothly.

Medical office managers typically do not work with patients. Rather, they focus on the business side of the healthcare office – general operations, inventory and stock, hiring staff, budgeting, marketing, and more. Perhaps the most important responsibility of an office manager, though, is supervising other staff members – the receptionist, the medical biller and coder, the medical assistants and possibly the nurses, too. By keeping the staff and their services organized and on task, medical office managers ensure top quality patient care.

To become a medical office manager, it is recommended that you earn at least a bachelor’s degree. Goodwin College’s health science major offers a bachelor’s degree path in healthcare administration, allowing you to take relevant management courses such as:  Healthcare Human Resource Management, Public Health and Personnel Administration, and Organization & Administration of Long-Term Care.

2. Healthcare HR Manager

Human resource (HR) managers are needed in every business and organization. These are the people that oversee the staffing of a facility – hiring, onboarding, and placing job candidates in their new roles. HR managers are also responsible for overseeing employee salaries, benefits (such as holiday and sick time), and ensuring that all new hires comply with federal and local labor laws.

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, human resources managers usually need a bachelor’s level education. Candidates for a healthcare-specific role may earn a bachelor’s degree in HR, business, or, most relevantly, in health science with a focus in administration or management. Through the healthcare administration concentration at Goodwin College, you can expect to take courses specific to human resources and operations in a healthcare facility, and leave fully equipped to lead in HR.

3. Nursing Home Administrator or Administrative Assistant

If you are interested in healthcare administration at a larger scale, you may choose a career in a long-term care facility such as a nursing home. Nursing home administrators oversee the day-to-day operations of a nursing home, from patient admissions to building and staff management. Nursing home administrators may also be involved with the budgeting, accounting, and financial planning of the facility – ensuring that all is running efficiently and cost-effectively.

In Connecticut, you must be licensed to become a nursing home administrator. And to earn licensure, you must have at least a bachelor’s degree combined with on-the-job training in a long-term care setting. Employers may also prefer candidates who have taken coursework in healthcare administration and long-term care. If you are looking for engaging classroom and off-site internship experiences in a real-life nursing home facility, Goodwin College’s health science degree may be for you.

4. Medical Reimbursement Specialist

For those with a fondness for finance and healthcare, a career as a medical reimbursement specialist may be for you. Medical reimbursement is a very specialized field. These experts work alongside doctors and nurses in a supportive, administrative role, ensuring both financial and medical records are well-managed. They also work with insurance and billing companies to process the payment methods of patients, and to help patients schedule payments for medical bills. Medical reimbursement specialists also help patients with pharmaceutical reimbursements.

To become a medical reimbursement specialist, you must have a bachelor’s degree with a focus in healthcare administration. It is very helpful for candidates to have background knowledge in applied accounting, business planning, and medical terminology – all of which are courses offered in Goodwin College’s health science program.

5. Laboratory Manager

Maybe you’re interested in a supervisory administrative role, but also have a passion for the science-side of healthcare. You enjoy collecting, testing, and analyzing specimens in a laboratory setting. You want to put on that lab coat every morning and get involved in your work. At the same time, though, you also enjoy overseeing operations, making sure the workplace is stocked and clean, and that your team is taking any proper safety precautions. This is exactly what a laboratory manager does.

Lab managers can work in a variety of different laboratories – from clinical to toxicology labs – but can typically be found carrying out similar tasks: scheduling staff, reordering inventory and supplies, maintaining security standards, and ensuring team safety. Even for an entry-level position, lab managers are required to have at least a bachelor’s degree in health science or healthcare.

Healthcare administration is a far-reaching field, with many job opportunities available to trained and educated grads holding a bachelor’s degree. If you’re interested in pursuing one of the many healthcare administration careers in Connecticut, your next step will be to enroll in a bachelor’s program. Start your path at Goodwin by visiting https://www.goodwin.edu/landingpages/healthcare or calling 800-889-3282.