Before you can get started searching for this type of employment, you need to understand what is required. Clinical managers are most commonly going to be found in larger medical groups where numerous physicians are collected. Your job will be administrative primarily because you will be in charge of managing the operations of your part of the facility. For example, some clinical managers only hold mental health jobs. For this reason, you will need some medical background.
Undoubtedly, your job will be a difficult one in the constantly changing landscape of medicine and insurance. For example, part of your job will be to ensure that your physicians and staff are adhering to all government regulations. This requires always knowing what those regulations are and carefully monitoring the activities going on at the clinic or medical group.
Another down side you should consider is that clinical managers can be called upon to work long hours. If there is an emergency at the facility, you are likely to be called to come in and oversee the situation.
Preparing for the Career
Like most medical careers, you're going to need some education in order to reach this level in the field. Generally, you will need a degree in whatever field you are hoping to manage. For example, if you want to be the clinical manager for the nursing department, you would need a strong background in nursing. Having actual nursing experience would be a plus. Remember that this requirement will give you perspective on your department and will help you make education decisions about how to best manage it.
Advancement into higher administrative levels is possible if that's something you might desire. However, such a move will be likely to require further education. You may need to earn a master's degree in health services administration or something similar in order to climb the ladder.
If you are primarily interested in healthcare IT jobs, your education requirements are going to even stricter. Less than four dozen accredited bachelor degree and three master degree programs in this field are available in the United States. To qualify for employment, you must complete one of these programs. That's because dealing with this private information is extremely important and must be done according to very strict regulations.
Getting the Job
Once you have completed the desired education, don't expect to earn a spot as a clinical manager immediately. In most cases, it won't work that way. Instead, you may begin in healthcare assistant jobs. That means you might work under the clinical manager of your department.
In the majority of situations, however, you will need to begin at the lowest rung on the ladder in your field and work your way up. Most of the clinical managers are actually not recruited from outside their organizations but from within the existing department supervisor staff. That means your best chance for advancement is getting your foot in the door and making a name for yourself while employed at the facility. Furthering your education is a great way to improve your reputation and to articulate your ambition to those who matter when it comes to these decisions.
Of course, all of these approaches to finding the clinical manager job you want require first identifying the positions that are available. Although the medical field is definitely one of the hottest at the moment and is showing no signs of slowing in terms of growth, your best chances for finding a job will be to search outside your local radius, especially if you live in an area with a medical program that would prepare others for the same jobs you want.
Finding jobs outside your local area can be a challenge. However, the solution is to search via the Internet. While you may be able to find some available openings via general job search sites, you are better off focusing your attention on medical-specific sites so you can see a wider range of available positions in more diverse locations.
Once you have identified some potential employment opportunities through these sites, you can apply for the positions via email or through the site itself in many cases. Be sure that your resume is saved in a .pdf document if you must attach it to an email or profile since such a format will not lose any of its visual appearance when opened by a recipient.
