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What is Healthcare Administration?
Healthcare administration includes managing healthcare organizations and ensuring that high-quality care is provided to patients. Hospitals and clinics that treat patients in this function handle the business aspects of their operations.
The role of a healthcare administrator can either be played by one or more individuals. In addition to possessing experience in their specialization area, team members are also knowledgeable about how to manage a business effectively.
Healthcare Administration ensures that all the necessary resources are in place so that the company can function smoothly and efficiently. Healthcare admins have a wide array of responsibilities and duties including: budget management, planning education, policies and procedures, risk mitigation, marketing and more.
Health Administration is a growing and exciting field that offers both top salaries and high job satisfaction for those who feel the call to healthcare, yet do not wish to be direct providers. Healthcare Administrators find work in a wide range of environments and can craft a career that suits their personal and professional goals within the wider healthcare industry. If you live in Hawaii, you are sure to find growing opportunities as your population ages, especially if more people are able to access healthcare.
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Online Healthcare Administration Education in Hawaii
Online Bachelor's Degree in Healthcare Administration (BSHCA)
While you might be able to find an entry-level position with an associate degree, your career will really get started in health care administration when you graduate with a bachelor’s degree.
There are many health care administration programs that will prepare you for a career in health administration. As you sort through them all, there are a few things to consider. First, consider the location and other logistical aspects of the program. You will need to make sure that you can attend classes, so a local, traditional campus will be helpful. If your favorite program is in another town or state, ask yourself if you're willing to move to complete your education.
Hybrid Programs
These days, you might be able to find a program online, or one that offers a mix of traditional and online classroom environments. Such programs are often great for students who maintain full or part-time working hours. That is, if you are working you will only be required to take a certain percentage, if any, of courses in a traditional classroom. As a resident of Hawaii, a fully online course may be one of your better choices, as more programs than not are on the mainland.
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Online Degrees
Once you are open to taking a full health care administration degree online, your options open up quite a bit. More and more traditional colleges and universities are offering online degree programs. Where once people on Hawaii were rather restricted from taking courses in, say, North Carolina, now those courses are a click away.
When you have decided that healthcare administration is the career path for you, you will want to evaluate your prospective academic career with a more discerning eye. That is, you should evaluate the academic worthiness of the program. There is nothing more heartbreaking than hearing of students who chose the wrong program and now have degrees that aren't of much value in the marketplace. With that in mind, the first thing to consider is your program's accreditation.
Accreditation
Accreditation is bestowed on an institution by an independent agency that evaluates healthcare management curriculum, the faculty, as well as current and former students to determine the program's efficacy. In general, you should look for programs that have regional accreditation. One other way to determine if a school is worthy is if they are acknowledged by graduate schools. This will mean more research, but if you select a few potential graduate schools, contact them to see if a transcript from your undergraduate program will be honored when you apply. They may only offer a contingent response, but if they do accept those transcripts, then you have found a school worthy of your time and energy.
Faculty
You'll also want to evaluate your potential healthcare management faculty. After all, they will be your primary point of contact between yourself and the university. There is no clear-cut way to assess whether real-world experience makes a better instructor or if stronger academic credentials are preferred. For that reason, you might want to seek a program that can offer a balance of experienced and pure-academic instructors. That is, while an experienced instructor may offer more practical insights, they might not be as adept at conveying their knowledge as an instructor with a lot of classroom experience. In general, look for instructors whose academic specialties match your interests.
Online Master's Degree in Healthcare Administration (MHA)
Once you have completed an undergraduate degree, it is wise to start considering a graduate degree. While you may want a break from studies, at least start perusing graduate catalogs. This is because, as more people achieve an undergrad degree, a graduate degree is increasingly valuable, and some employers will expect it for higher-level healthcare administration jobs in Hawaii. Don't find out too late that your undergrad degree limits your career within your hospital or other healthcare system.
Graduate Degree Options
When you seek a graduate program, you might start looking to find schools that offer full-time or part-time MBA programs that offer a specialty in healthcare administration.
In fact, there are four degrees that you can choose from:
- MBA in Health Administration
- Master of Science in Health Administration
- Master of Health Administration
- Master of Science in Health Policy and Management
Graduate School Curriculum
During your grad school years, you will go deeper into topics that you have likely already covered in your undergrad coursework or in your professional experience.
A small sample of the courses you might face in grad school include, but is not limited to:
- Public Health Policy
- Healthcare Law
- Medical informatics
- Human resources in healthcare
- Medical ethics
- Healthcare technology
- Management in healthcare
Prior to submitting applications for graduate school, you can start preparing your credentials. If you are working for a few years before entering graduate school, make sure that your job duties align with your long-term goals. That is, try to position yourself for maximum long-term personal and professional success as a healthcare administrator in Hawaii. This might involve taking internships in your desired field, such as public health or a hospital accounting department.
Keep a record of your experience so that you can detail your your hard work on a grad school application or interview. You will want to set yourself apart from the other candidates, and focused experience will help. It is also vital to establish good relationships with your co-workers and supervisors whom you will likely ask for letters of recommendation. Healthcare administration jobs in Hawaii are limited in number, so do your best to network as you build experience in healthcare administration jobs.
Careers and Salary Outlook
Salary and Earnings Potential
For salaries, few states match or beat Hawaii. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, in 2019 medical and health services managers made an annual mean wage between $46,750 and $174,140. Note that the state does have a relatively low population of employed professionals in this field. The BLS shows that Hawaii has between 70 and 1,540 total professionals in this field. Thus, a few highly paid professionals could skew salary statistics.
No matter what state you are in, you are bound to find all sorts of workplaces as you purse a career in healthcare administration. That is, administrators are needed in all sorts of facilities. You could work in a large organizational structure such as a hospital, or you could be in a smaller clinic. Administrators work in mental health hospitals, geriatric-care homes, assisted living, and HMO-type organizations that manage several clinics.
Career Options
The healthcare field is constantly growing and changing, but here is a sampling of jobs available in Hawaii:
- Director of Clinical Operations, Home Health – this job asks for experience with program design, home care, management, and leadership.
- Health Information Management Assistant – you'll need experience with RHIT and medical terms
- Community Allied Health Educator – medical technologists, RMAs, and CMAs should apply
- Community Relations Coordinator – those with marketing and customer service are a good fit for this position
- Director of Marketing and Recruitment – budgeting and staff administration are two skills you'll need here
Additional Helpful Resources
Prominent Employers in Hawaii
Some of Hawaii's top employers are in the healthcare sector. In fact, Kapiolani Medical Center, located in Honolulu, HI, is the second largest employer in the state, boasting over 5,000 employees. With the right background, you can land healthcare administration jobs in Hawaii.
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- Kapiolani Medical Ctr
- Queen's Medical Ctr
- Hawaii Health Systems Corp
- Kaiser Permanente Medical Ctr
- Kapi'olani Health
- Pali Momi Medical Ctr
- Kuakini Health System
Health Administration Associations
As a healthcare administration professional, you will want to join one or more associations. These associations enable you to keep close contact with fellow professionals, facilitate ongoing education, promote career development, they host conventions, and even provide leadership opportunities. The HAH, for instance, provides legislative support at the state and federal level. They advocate for your profession.
The Healthcare Association of Hawaii (HAH) is an association that acts as the local affiliate for many national organizations:
- American Hospital Association
- American Healthcare Association
- National Center for Assisted Living
- National Association for Home Care and Hospice
- Council of State Home Care Associations
- American Association for Homecare
Your healthcare administration career can begin today when you begin the search for an ideal degree program. Whether you're in Honolulu, HI or out on Maui, your future is looking bright!