A medical administrator is a person who is a department head who is in charge of all administration aspects in a medical care facility. He is responsible for the supervision of the staff, faculty, contractors and patients; and all other operations in the medical environment. He is the kingpin of the hospital well.
If a physician or nurse is not available, he or she can be replaced by a medical coordinator. The coordinator is accountable for all personnel management and decision making. The position requires a bachelor’s degree in a health related college or university. He must possess a mastery of interpersonal relations, marketing, administration, and the knowledge in health care organization and administration. Communication skills and attention to detail are very essential for coordinators. He may also be an expert in the field of nursing, human anatomy, physiology, and other medical terminology.
The coordinator must be well experienced in emergency medicine,adays, as the role of the medical coordinator becomes more apparent in the field of health care. He or she must know how to save lives in many situations. Other than physician and nurse supervision, the coordinator is also responsible for ordering medical supplies and construction of equipment. He or she should set policies and principles for the use of the hospital services. The coordinator should be fully familiar with the hospital’s or medical facility’s policies. He or she should possess an excellent background in personnel selection and recruitment, financial management, and hospital administration.
Coordinator’s duties will vary and depend on the size of the medical facility or health care center. His or her duties include the handling of multiple administrative cases, meetings administrative staff, and monitoring the operations of the operations. The medical coordinator is the necessary department in medical facility to make sure that all administrative and clinical operations are carried out as smoothly as possible. He or she should be proficient in organization, analysis, planning, budgeting, and human resource management.
Many medical administrators work in hospitals, which is the largest employer of medical personnel. A number of medical administrators are employed by physician groups. Physician governments and specialty societies also have personnel administrators. Most of these administrators are employed by health care institutions that have hundreds of beds.
Other administrators work in offices of physicians, and are called clinical assistants. The duties of physician assistants and clinical assistants are similar, except that patients are seen by a physician or a nurse, and not directed to a lab technician or nursing home facility. The physician or nurse then refers the patient to a different member of the health care team. The assistant is there to help the doctor or nurse with the medical equipment, giving instructions and suggestions on the various ailments or medical procedures. The assistant is there to help in creating the treatment schedule, making the appointments, and checking the patient’s medical history.
Thus, a medical administrator is a professional who needs training and exposure to medicine to be able to function well in the field. A minimum of a bachelor’s degree in science is required to be able to pass the certification exam for medical administrators, and they are usually members of the National Association of Medical Technicians (NAMT). There are other certifying organizations, but NAMT is the one that most of the medical administrators take their certification from.
The United States Department of Labor Statistics reports that medical and health services managers started out with a salary of about $10,000 in 1970. The rate of pay for medical administrators has been increasing at a faster rate than the average for all occupations since 1990. They now earn an average of $32,110 in a year. This is also the salary level that medical administrators in mental health settings like mental health professionals and social service providers. However, the salary earned by medical administrators differs widely from one industry to another. They earn more in hospitals than in other health care settings. They also earn higher salaries in large corporations who may have more than 500 employees. They also earn higher salaries in public health departments and home health care services. The salary that they earn also depends on the industry they work in.
They are also paid differently in the different settings. They earn more in privately owned clinics than in large public hospitals. They also earn more in privately owned and operated businesses (like private practices) than in large public hospitals. Thus, it is becoming increasingly important to earn the certification from a respected certification organization. The American Association of Medical Assistants (AAMA) certifies medical assistants on the national exam. Different states have different certification requirements. Some states require that you pass an exam from the state that you wish to work in, and some states do not. The requirements are set by each state.