To become a health care consultant, you first need to determine if this career path is a good fit for you. If the following description sounds like you, then you’re probably well suited for work in this field:
Those who become health care consultants are individuals that have an interest in helping health care organizations run efficiently, responsibly, with the ultimate goal of ensuring patient safety. Health care consultants must also have excellent communication and leadership skills.
They must be able to work effectively with others, share their ideas with others, and must be able to effectively develop and implement plans. Health care consultants must have a natural aptitude for, and an education in, business or health care administration.
Below we've outlined what you'll need to begin a career as a health care consultant. We've also included helpful occupational information, such as job description, job duties, salary expectations, a list of possible employers and much more!
Educational Requirements for Becoming a Health Care Consultant
Although the educational requirements for becoming a health care consultant vary by employer, professionals in this field typically have a master’s degree in a field such as Business Administration, Health Care Administration, Human Resources or a similar field, as well as management experience in the health care field.
Some employers may require health care consultants to enroll in continuing education courses in order to stay abreast of developments in the field of health care, such as management strategies and new technologies.
General Job Description
Health care consultants are hired by health care organizations on a part time or full time basis to assist them in finding new ways to improve and reorganize their infrastructure or to enhance a section of their company that is not operating efficiently.
Typical Job Duties
• Communicate with clients in order to identify operational problems and inefficiencies
• Perform preliminary research and examine existing data related to the problem
• Analyze employment numbers, revenue and interview personnel
• Use collected information to find ways of saving money or improving operational efficiency
• Submit written report to client which identifies inefficiencies and provides suggestions for improvement
• May assist organization with implementing proposed changes
Working Conditions Common to This Profession
Work Schedule: Health care consultants often work normal weekday working hours. They often must work beyond a normal 8-hour workday, and sometimes weekends, in order to attend meetings, or complete time-sensitive tasks.
Work Environment: The work of health care consultants can be quite stressful, as their work has a major impact on the effectiveness of programs and infrastructure they are analyzing, which ultimately impacts the quality of the health care services provided by the client.
Average Salary Level
Health care consultants may be hired by health care consulting firms, as a full or part-time employee, or they may be hired directly by clients as independent contractors. The salary level, or level of independent earnings, of health care consultants can vary based on factors such as how much they charge clients for their services; whether they work on a full-time, part-time or contractual basis; their level of education; their level of experience; their specific job duties and many others.
Health Care Consultant Salary - Canada: Unfortunately there is no reliable salary data available for health care consultants in Alberta, although we can get a good idea of what they earn by looking at the salary level of a closely related profession; according to the 2018 Alberta Wage and Salary Survey, Albertans in the Managers in Health Care occupational group earn an average salary of $114,837.
And according to WorkBC (Province of British Columbia), those in the Health policy researchers, consultants and program officers occupational group earn an annual provincial median salary of $70,720.
Salary - United States: Similarly to Canada, there is no reliable salary information available for this specific profession. However, the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics states that those working as "Medical and Health Services Managers" (a closely related occupational field) earn a median salary of $99,730.
Who Employs Health Care Consultants?
Health care consultants are hired by organizations that require assistance with finding ways to improve and reorganize their administrative infrastructure. They may be hired as full-time or part-time employees, or on a contractual basis, by organizations such as:
• Public health organizations
• Regional health authorities
• Hospitals and clinics
• Continuing care facilities
• Mental health facilities
• Rehabilitation centres and agencies
• Health planning agencies and government departments
• Health charities and foundations
• Private health care consulting companies
• Military hospitals and clinics
• Self-employment
Health Care Consultant Jobs - Current Opportunities
Our job board below has "Health Care Consultant" postings in Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom and Australia, when available:
Similar Careers in Our Database
Listed below are careers in our database that are similar in nature to "health care consultant", as they may involve many of the same skills, competencies and responsibilities.
References
Please consult the references below to find more information on the various aspects of a career as a health care consultant.
Alberta Learning and Information Service website: alis.alberta.ca
LIVESTRONG website: www.livestrong.com
United States Bureau of Labor Statistics website: www.bls.gov
WorkBC website: www.workbc.ca
Scholarships for Becoming a Health Care Consultant
The scholarships in our system that are relevant for becoming a health care consultant are all of those that can be found on our Exercise Science Scholarships, Management Scholarships and Kinesiology Scholarships pages.
Success Tip: Be sure to apply for any scholarships that you even barely qualify for, as there are millions of dollars of scholarships that go unused every year due to a lack of applicants!
Relevant Fields of Study
Studying one of the university majors listed below is an excellent starting point for getting into this profession. Click on the links to find out what else you can do with these majors!
