The healthcare industry has a massive impact around the globe, but what is healthcare management, how can you implement it successfully in your organization, and why does it matter?
Over 14% of the US workforce is in the medical industry — that’s over 22 million people. With the onset of the pandemic in early 2020, around 18% of healthcare workers quit their jobs, and another 12% have been laid off; however, healthcare burnout was an issue long before the pandemic began.
Working in healthcare is arduous and stressful, with 55% of front-line workers reporting strong feelings of burnout. With the amount of bureaucracy involved in the field, we need to find a way to give healthcare workers the ability to focus more on their skills and patients.
Related: The Pandemic & Hospital Staffing Challenges
That’s where healthcare management comes in.
What Is Healthcare Management?
Healthcare management is the oversight, management, and administration of hospitals, hospital networks, healthcare systems, public health systems, and other medical facilities.
Healthcare managers ensure that each department runs smoothly and hires qualified employees. They also check that information is spread efficiently throughout the facility, ensure they reach specific outcomes, and more.
There are both generalists and specialists within the healthcare management field, with duties ranging from overseeing entire facilities to focusing on specific departments, like accounting, policy analysis, etc.
Healthcare management is an industry that’s growing rapidly in the US. According to the BLS, healthcare management jobs are expected to grow by 32% between 2020 and 2030 — that’s much faster than average.
Each year, the BLS projects there to be approximately 52,000 openings for health and medical services managers.
Why Is Healthcare Management Necessary?
The healthcare industry changes daily — new technologies continuously emerge, leaving healthcare organizations struggling to keep up. As a result, the industry faces immense pressure to deliver quality patient care while staying up-to-date with the latest medical trends.
Healthcare facilities also need to comply with regulations like the GDPR, HIPAA, etc. That’s where healthcare management becomes so necessary.
Using the principles of project management, healthcare leaders can bring discipline and structure into their organizations. Effective healthcare management can help organizations provide:
- Smoother communication
- Better patient experience and care
- Better stakeholder relations
- Improved management
- More efficient budgeting
What Does a Healthcare Manager Do?
Healthcare managers have varying duties. Ideally, it’s a role for those who want to work in the industry and make a difference in a less clinical setting. General responsibilities of healthcare managers include:
- Optimizing budgets and dealing with general finances
- Attending various meetings and reporting back to the facility staff
- Maintaining relationships with stakeholders
- Managing change in the facilities and dealing with it appropriately
- Defining outcomes and developing strategies and plans
- Overseeing the day-to-day operations of a department or hospital
- Handling any issues that occur
- Supervising staff, including doctors, providers, and caregivers
- Creating work schedules and planning for the hiring of new staff
- Planning, coordinating, and directing non-clinical activities in the organization
- Performing risk assessment and quality assurance work
- Maintaining patient well-being and satisfaction
Related: Artificial Intelligence in Healthcare
What Is the Difference Between a Healthcare Manager and a Healthcare Administrator?
We often hear the two terms (healthcare manager and healthcare administrator) used interchangeably because of their similarities. While the two roles are closely interlinked and share many of the same responsibilities, the difference depends on the organization — in some, the two titles mean the same thing, and in others, they are completely different roles.
The most common difference between healthcare managers and healthcare administrators is that the administrators often handle staff management while the managers care for the organization as a whole.
Healthcare administrators typically:
- Directly manage the facility staff
- Develop objectives for each department
- Ensure regulatory compliance
- Improve the efficiency of healthcare practices
- Organize and keep records of services performed in the facility
What Are Three Examples of Healthcare Management Methodologies?
So, what does project management look like in healthcare?
- Agile project management
This methodology relieves the problems of traditional healthcare management by following an iterative approach, breaking down projects into small development cycles called sprints. Healthcare managers define their backlogs that outline what they and their team need to work on during each cycle.
In the healthcare industry, where change happens quickly, the agile method facilitates easier adjustment to those changes. It also provides benefits and works well in the industry by ensuring adaptability, teamwork, flexibility, and quicker ROI. In healthcare settings, agile methodologies help healthcare managers keep up with their day-to-day needs.
- Waterfall project management
The waterfall approach is a more traditional process for healthcare management — it follows a linear process and typically involves five stages:
- Requirements
- Designs
- Implementation
- Testing
- Delivery
It’s commonly used in large industries, like construction and healthcare, but it does have some drawbacks. This method can delay results, causing projects to become redundant, which can be detrimental in healthcare where immediate care is crucial.
- Hybrid project management
Because of how quickly the healthcare field changes, using a hybrid approach is typically the best route. Healthcare managers can implement projects using an agile methodology and still have their waterfall roadmap to share with stakeholders.
This method keeps end-users involved during every stage, ensuring the best project outcomes and keeping the stakeholders happy — it’s a win-win.
If you need to implement healthcare management in your organization, follow these nine tips to ensure success:
- Break project deliverables into small, manageable sections that you can achieve in 3-12 months.
- For multi-year projects with large scopes of work, create a project charter for each phase.
- Diagnose project goals and requirements by asking leadership the right questions.
- When working on multiple projects, prioritize the ones that help streamline existing processes.
- Ensure open communication between you, your team, and your stakeholders.
- Create a diverse team and bring different departments together to improve processes.
- Contingencies happen — run tests, adapt, and move forward constantly.
- Follow your project charter that defines goals, timelines, key metrics, and available resources.
- Stay in touch with healthcare governance and regulations that might impact your project or organization.
At OptiMed, we can help manage your patient care. See the difference that relationship-based medicine can make — Get in touch today.
Related: What Is a Hospitalist?