How I Decided to Join the Healthcare Administration Profession - Research Paper Example

Healthcare Administration How I decided to join the Healthcare Administration Profession For a long time since I was young, I had the motivation to work in the healthcare industry. I often thought of being a doctor like my uncle. Seeing my uncle work as a doctor in a private hospital was quite inspiring. Both at home and at work, my uncle seemed to think deeply before he made many decisions. I got to ask him many questions regarding his profession and what his work entailed. Back then, my mind could not absorb all the information he gave but at least it served to greatly inspire me to join the healthcare industry. This being the case, joining the healthcare industry as a professional will serve to fulfill one of my life time goals. My interest and good performance in Biology, health sciences, and management courses have been influential in my choice of majoring in healthcare administration. Apart from the interest I have in these subjects – subjects that mesh well with my career choice, I have proven leadership skills. In high school and college, many of my peers look up to me for direction and guidance whenever they are faced with different challenges. This in itself has motivated me to pursue a profession that will involve guiding and directing other people, and making decisions that affect whole units and possibly the entire organization. My desire to positively impact lives and society in general has also been a great influence toward my pursuit of the healthcare administration profession. I have strongly held the belief that being in a management position will give me the chance to make significant changes in the lives of many people, especially those in need of medical services. From new articles and from the stories I have heard from friends, I have realized that in many parts of the world, people suffer greatly for lack of good healthcare services. This revelation has been a challenge to me to the extent that I have always kept asking myself what I can do to make members of society have better healthcare services. It is my strong belief that people should not suffer if I have the capacity to help them in some way. With good management of health facilities, members of society can enjoy a higher quality of life. I am motivated to join the healthcare management profession so that I can positively contribute to the good health of as many people as possible. In conclusion, there are a number of factors that have influenced my decision to join the health administration profession. My uncle’s industriousness and his way of tacking issues motivated me to by like him, a medical practitioner. My interest and good performances in biological sciences and management have also impacted on my decision to go the healthcare administration way. Most importantly, my desire to positively impact on the lives of members of society in general has driven me to seek a way of contributing to their welfare even as I fulfill my childhood dream of joining the healthcare sector. Information Summary on Healthcare Administrators from Occupational Outlook Handbook or O*NET. According to the Occupational Outlook Handbook, healthcare administrators are also called health service managers or medical managers (Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2014). The role of healthcare administrators is to direct, plan and coordinate health and medical services. In this respect, the administrators direct, supervise and evaluate the activities of personnel under their direction as noted by O*NET (2014). They also direct the recruitment, hiring and training of personnel; establish work schedules, maintain records, and conduct and administer fiscal operations of the units they are in charge of (O*NET, 2010). The administrators can specialize in managing specific clinical areas or they may manage entire facilities. They may also manage a group of medical officers under medical practice. The administrators should be able to adapt fast to changes in technology, regulations, and laws that impact on healthcare (Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2014). Medical managers mainly work in offices in healthcare facilities. In this respect, they may work in nursing homes, hospitals, or group medical practices. Statistics from the Occupation handbook reveal that in 2012, healthcare administrators held close to 315,500 jobs (Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2014). It is estimated that employment of healthcare managers will grow by 23% from 2012 to 2022, a rate that is above the average for all occupations. O*Net (2010) shares a view with the occupational handbook in so far as the bright outlook of this occupation is concerned. Between 2012 and 2022, it is estimated that there will be an employment change of 73,300 of healthcare administrators. The entry level for healthcare administrators is Bachelor’s degree. In 2012, the median pay for a medical manager was $88,580 per year (Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2014). Some of the majors that may land one to this career field include: master’s degrees in public administration, health services, business administration, long-term care administration, and public health (Bureau of Labor Statistics1 (2014). Summary of the Informational Interview I held an interview with the manager of xxxxx hospital on xxxxx. My interview with the manager mainly focused on the future of the hospital. I chose to interview the hospital manager in view of the fact that he is an administrator and is well placed to steer the hospital to greater heights by directing the way it operates. I learnt quite a lot from the interview and realized that the information that the manager provided me with is closely related to what the handbook and O*NET say. According to the manager, the hospital is keen on focusing on its competency, quality, and service goals even as it plans to enhance its long-term goal of enhancing its door to door service. Employee motivation is one thing that managers need to do if their organizations have to remain successful in a competitive and demanding global environment. One way of ensuring that employees remain motivated according to the manager is creating a conducive working environment for employees, making them feel part and parcel of the organization. The manager also cites good remuneration and minimum working hours as measures that the hospital applies in motivating its employees. Like any other business, the hospital faces a myriad of challenges. The main challenges that the hospital manager noted were financial, rigid government policies, and shortage of qualified personnel. In addition to these, the hospital faces stiff competition from other hospitals which are better endowed financially. From the interview, it emerges that the hospital is keen on the safety of its personnel, patients, and members of society in general. In this respect, the organization has a team of highly qualified personnel to deal with emergency as and when they occur. The emergency team are quick in offering first aid and emergency services so as to save as many lives as possible. Time management is one thing that I find particularly important for managers. In regard to time management, the hospital manager noted that he applies several strategies to ensure that his time is well managed. One of the strategies in this respect is balancing tasks. I believe that the hospital manager implies that he prioritizes tasks as he comes up with a schedule, working on more urgent and pressing tasks first and less urgent ones later. The manager uses different tools to ensure that he performs his tasks within time. Some of the tools he uses are reminders and timetables. The manager notes that it is very important for him to maintain self discipline and focus even as he tries to strike a balance between everything that he does. Without self discipline, probably he would not be committed to sticking to the timetables he creates and would not honor the reminders that he has put in place. It also emerges from the interview that the manager may not be in a position to deal with every situation at the same time. The manager overcomes this challenge by delegating some duties that he considers to be delegable. How my learning habits developed in college can impact success in job or career choice College has taught me how to think critically by evaluating different points of view. I have also learnt how to understand other people who may have a perspective that is different from mine. Yet another thing that I have learnt is time management. With the numerous tasks and assignments that I have to do, I have learnt how to make schedules, prioritize tasks, and manage my time generally. Several assignments that we do in class involve researching and writing objectively. I have realized that many of the learning habits and activities that we engage in in college are geared toward a successful career. As an aspiring healthcare administrator, I need to be able to manage my time well so as to meet deadlines and objectives, and save lives. By listening keenly and appreciating different points of view, I will be able to make decisions objectively as opposed to subjectively in my line of duty. Through the writing skills that I have developed, I will be able to communicate clearly and effectively with different people, which is important in virtually every industry and organization. Critical thinking emerges as one very important activity in many professions. The critical thinking skills that I have learnt will go a long way in helping me evaluate situations so that I will be able to make good decisions. Yet again, the skills that I learn regarding how to relate with and manage other people as a leader will help me be successful in my chosen career since it generally involves the management of different resources, human resources included. What I have learned from this assignment From this assignment, I have learnt about the career outlook of healthcare administration profession. From my research on the profession through O*NET and the Occupational Outlook Handbook, I have learnt that the future looks bright for those in the healthcare administration profession. I have also learnt quite a lot about what professionals in this field do; they generally manage healthcare organizations or units. I have also learnt that healthcare administrators or managers need to be adaptive to change much as they need to have knowledge on management, Vital skills for professionals in this field include critical thinking, time management, and decision making among many others. I have also learnt that technology, regulations, and laws impact on healthcare to the extent that people in the healthcare administration need to be wary of changes related to these factors. Very importantly, I have learnt that there is a great connection between what I learn in class and what happens in the field. I have learnt in class, for example, how to think critically, communicate effectively, and how to make management decisions. From my interview with the hospital manager, the situation on the ground has come alive – healthcare managers need to delegate some duties and need to make decisions based on different factors including emerging technologies, government policies, and the needs of employees. This assignment has been helpful in boosting my research skills. I have learnt how to find information from databases by making general and specific searches. By engaging directly with someone who is experienced and knowledgeable in the field of healthcare administration, I have learnt how important time management is for professionals and some of the strategies that can be applied to properly manage time. There are a number of majors that align with the healthcare administrator career. Those who major in public administration, health services, business administration, long-term care administration, public health healthcare management, organizational behavior, public health, social work, and sociology can end up in the healthcare management profession (Explore Health Careers, 2014). Having a background in xxxxxx(my education), I feeling pursuing a career related to health administration is a good fit for me. The courses that I have done previously mesh well with the courses that feature in the curricular of healthcare administrators. Furthermore, the skills that I have developed over time position me well for the challenges and tasks that healthcare administrators encounter in the field. I intend to major in the field of Healthcare administration. Thereafter, I hope to work for a period of three years to gain experience in this field. References Bureau of Labor Statistics (2014). Medical and Health Services Managers. Occupational Outlook Handbook. Retrieved from http://www.bls.gov/ooh/management/medical-and-health-services-managers.htm Bureau of Labor Statistics1 (2014). How to Become a Medical or Health Services Manager http://www.bls.gov/ooh/management/medical-and-health-services-managers.htm#tab-4 Explore Health Careers (2014). Health Administrator: Academic Requirement http://explorehealthcareers.org/en/Career/56/Health_Administrator#Tab=Requirements O*NET (2010). Summary Report for: 11-9111.00 - Medical and Health Services Managers. Retrieved from http://www.onetonline.org/link/summary/11-9111.00 Appendix 1: Interview Transcript Interview with the hospital manager Me: What the future plan of this organization? Hospital manager: The organization tends to stick to its goals of competency, quality and service motive to the society it serves. In long term, we will enhance door to door service, to be able meet disable and old patients on time. This will improve the health of the society at large. Me: How do you motivate your work force? Hospital manager: This is done with creating a team of qualified personnel and creating a conducive environment. This enables workers to feel they are part and parcel of the organization. Also we offer better remuneration and minimum working hours to enable employees relax and refreshed their thinking capacity Me: What are the challenges faced by your organization? Hospital manager: This run from financial and shortage of qualified personnel to deliver the services. Also Government policies are quite rigid thus leading to low service. Competition is stiff a times making it difficult to counter other hospital with bigger financial muscles. Me: How do you ensure everyone in the organization is safe? Hospital manager: We have got measures to respond to emergency accidents that may occur in the process of delivering services, this include; a ready emergency team of qualified personnel capable of diagnosing first aid to the affected individuals, on time, also we have isolation rooms to counter any outbreak of diseases. Me: How do you manage you time? Hospital Manger: It requires a proper balancing of chore, creating timetables, reminders and monitoring your daily tasks. Self-discipline and focus should be the key. Also other duties can be delegated to keep focus on the main core issue Read More