Health director vs medical director

The differences between health directors and medical directors can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 4-6 years to become both a health director and a medical director. Additionally, a medical director has an average salary of $230,317, which is higher than the $89,244 average annual salary of a health director.

The top three skills for a health director include patients, home health and oversight. The most important skills for a medical director are patients, medical care, and medical services.

Health director vs medical director overview

	Health Director	Medical Director
Yearly salary	$89,244	$230,317
Hourly rate	$42.91	$110.73
Growth rate	28%	28%
Number of jobs	81,038	75,810
Job satisfaction	-	4
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 51%	Bachelor's Degree, 32%
Average age	47	47
Years of experience	6	6

What does a health director do?

A Health Director is responsible for developing health programs for disease prevention and the promotion of good health practices. They must keep health records and ensure excellent health facility maintenance.

What does a medical director do?

A medical director is responsible for handling the overall supervision of different medical departments, managing the coordination between medical teams to ensure smooth operations and achieve high-quality care services for the patients. Medical directors enforce strict guidelines and safety measures for everyone's adherence. They also implement medical care programs, recruit medical staff, inspect the adequacy of medical equipment, respond to patient's inquiries and concerns, and oversee the facilities' procedures. A medical director manages the budget of the department, allocating equal resources to address every need.

Health director vs medical director salary

Health directors and medical directors have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Health Director	Medical Director
Average salary	$89,244	$230,317
Salary range	Between $56,000 And $142,000	Between $143,000 And $369,000
Highest paying City	Greenwich, CT	Seattle, WA
Highest paying state	Connecticut	Alaska
Best paying company	Amgen	UnitedHealth Group
Best paying industry	-	Insurance

Differences between health director and medical director education

There are a few differences between a health director and a medical director in terms of educational background:

	Health Director	Medical Director
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 51%	Bachelor's Degree, 32%
Most common major	Nursing	Medicine
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	University of Michigan - Ann Arbor

Health director vs medical director demographics

Here are the differences between health directors' and medical directors' demographics:

	Health Director	Medical Director
Average age	47	47
Gender ratio	Male, 35.3% Female, 64.7%	Male, 57.0% Female, 43.0%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 11.5% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 14.5% Asian, 7.1% White, 61.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%	Black or African American, 11.0% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 14.2% Asian, 7.9% White, 61.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%
LGBT Percentage	12%	12%

Differences between health director and medical director duties and responsibilities

Health director example responsibilities.

Manage accreditation process with AAHC, JCAHO, Medicare, HIPAA, AOA, ACGME, RRC, and individual payers.
Manage the agency's daily operations to ensure CMS compliance.
Manage EHS activities for manufacturing plants, global sourcing centers, and customer sites.
Initiate sentinel system allowing company to proactively manage reimbursement reductions impose by state Medicaid programs.
Manage multiple patients, assessing ability to continue living independently or moving to higher acuity care.
Conduct staff training regarding first aid, CPR, a.

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Medical director example responsibilities.

Manage OPD for acute injuries.
Manage patients with diabetes, hypertension and other medical problems.
Manage patients living with HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, and other sexually transmit infections.
Manage hypertension and diabetes in elderly patients
Conduct psychiatry evaluations and treatment, manage co-occurring disorders.
Manage budget planning, forecasting and accruals for improve financial management.

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Health director vs medical director skills

Common health director skills

Patients, 13%
Home Health, 9%
Oversight, 8%
Patient Care, 6%
Social Work, 5%
CPR, 4%

Common medical director skills

Patients, 12%
Medical Care, 7%
Medical Services, 6%
Utilization Review, 5%
Appeals, 5%
Internal Medicine, 4%

Health Director vs. similar jobs

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Updated January 8, 2025

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