A day in the life of a medical administrator

Physicians save and improve the lives of others daily, but they would have difficulty keeping their offices and practices open without medical administrators’ hard work. A medical administrator’s main responsibility comes down to ensuring a medical facility’s smooth and efficient operation. This is similar to administrative assistants’ duties in a corporate setting: doing whatever it takes to make sure the business runs like clockwork. But medical administrators are also equipped with additional knowledge of the terminology and practices that are useful in the medical field.

Some common daily responsibilities of a medical administrator include:

• Assisting physicians and medical scientists in preparing reports
• Recording basic patient histories
• Arranging for patients to be hospitalized
• Ordering supplies for the office or laboratory
• Office organizational tasks: scheduling meetings and appointments, organizing files, using computers to maintain and update databases

Most commonly, medical administrators work in a physician’s office or in a hospital. These individuals also have the opportunity to pursue their more specific interests within the healthcare industry. They can choose to work in chiropractic offices, dental offices, veterinary offices, nursing homes or for insurance companies.