Health unit supervisor vs clinical director

The differences between health unit supervisors and clinical 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 unit supervisor and a clinical director. Additionally, a clinical director has an average salary of $96,497, which is higher than the $74,174 average annual salary of a health unit supervisor.

The top three skills for a health unit supervisor include patients, social work and patient care. The most important skills for a clinical director are patients, patient care, and physical therapy.

Health unit supervisor vs clinical director overview

	Health Unit Supervisor	Clinical Director
Yearly salary	$74,174	$96,497
Hourly rate	$35.66	$46.39
Growth rate	28%	28%
Number of jobs	70,139	83,232
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 54%	Bachelor's Degree, 43%
Average age	47	47
Years of experience	6	6

What does a health unit supervisor do?

A health unit supervisor handles both the administrative and executive tasks in a health care unit. They coordinate all that takes place in one or more patient care units in health care facilities. The unit supervisor plans and oversees administrative operations. They also supervise other personnel or staff in the unit or ward. They may also be responsible for the generation of schedules for teams in the unit. They will be required to communicate with other members of the administrative team.

What does a clinical director do?

A clinical director is a managing professional who manages the work of healthcare providers to ensure quality patient care is achieved. Clinical directors are responsible for organizational tasks such as adjusting staff schedules, explaining insurance benefits to the patients, and managing financial reports. They can work either in small clinics with a smaller workforce or larger hospitals with multiple departments. Clinical directors may also assist in the hiring process of healthcare providers and should establish a positive work environment.

Health unit supervisor vs clinical director salary

Health unit supervisors and clinical directors have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Health Unit Supervisor	Clinical Director
Average salary	$74,174	$96,497
Salary range	Between $50,000 And $108,000	Between $63,000 And $145,000
Highest paying City	San Francisco, CA	New York, NY
Highest paying state	New Hampshire	Rhode Island
Best paying company	Tesla	Sutro Biopharma
Best paying industry	-	Health Care

Differences between health unit supervisor and clinical director education

There are a few differences between a health unit supervisor and a clinical director in terms of educational background:

	Health Unit Supervisor	Clinical Director
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 54%	Bachelor's Degree, 43%
Most common major	Nursing	Nursing
Most common college	University of Michigan - Ann Arbor	University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Health unit supervisor vs clinical director demographics

Here are the differences between health unit supervisors' and clinical directors' demographics:

	Health Unit Supervisor	Clinical Director
Average age	47	47
Gender ratio	Male, 35.1% Female, 64.9%	Male, 35.2% Female, 64.8%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 11.4% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 14.6% Asian, 7.6% White, 61.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%	Black or African American, 11.6% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 14.6% Asian, 8.1% White, 60.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%
LGBT Percentage	12%	12%

Differences between health unit supervisor and clinical director duties and responsibilities

Health unit supervisor example responsibilities.

Engage, educate and empower participants to access community base resources in or- der to achieve rehabilitation and recovery.
Facilitate administrative, advocacy, customer service and technical support to uninsure and under-insure patients, and their families.
Engage, educate and empower participants to access community base resources in or- der to achieve rehabilitation and recovery.
Coordinate with clinical managers regarding: CMS, CDPH, TJC, and ACHC survey preparation process and on-site surveys.
Assist in respiratory fit-testing program, strongly contributing to prevention of tuberculosis and other airborne diseases.

Clinical director example responsibilities.

Develop distinctive ambulatory strategies to achieve and sustain competitive healthcare advantage.
Manage and assist with data collection and input for MDS.
Manage quality of documentation through education and electronic review of clinical processes utilizing HCHB EMR.
Manage front office, marketing, and communication -demonstrated/supervise exercises for patients -Developed instructional packets for home exercise programs
Manage projects and ambulatory system initiatives, and collaborate with system leadership teams to ensure EMR alignment with all regulatory requirements.
Experience in GCP, FDA audits, and regulatory guidance review and implementation.

Health unit supervisor vs clinical director skills

Common health unit supervisor skills

Patients, 21%
Social Work, 13%
Patient Care, 11%
CPR, 6%
Substance Abuse, 5%
Clinical Supervision, 4%

Common clinical director skills

Patients, 18%
Patient Care, 11%
Physical Therapy, 5%
Social Work, 4%
Rehabilitation, 4%
Clinical Services, 3%

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Health Unit Supervisor
Health Unit Supervisor vs Clinical Director

Updated January 8, 2025

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