Health unit supervisor vs patient care manager

The differences between health unit supervisors and patient care managers 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 patient care manager. Additionally, a health unit supervisor has an average salary of $74,174, which is higher than the $65,369 average annual salary of a patient care manager.

The top three skills for a health unit supervisor include patients, social work and patient care. The most important skills for a patient care manager are home health, patients, and quality care.

Health unit supervisor vs patient care manager overview

	Health Unit Supervisor	Patient Care Manager
Yearly salary	$74,174	$65,369
Hourly rate	$35.66	$31.43
Growth rate	28%	28%
Number of jobs	70,139	123,652
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 54%	Bachelor's Degree, 45%
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 patient care manager do?

Patient care managers are executives who are in charge of supervising a clinical team. The managers take responsibility for directing patient care within an organization. Also called health care managers, they protect every patient's safety and health in a clinical setting. They interact with the healthcare team members to maintain open communication. It is also part of their duties to supervise the daily operations in the clinical care units. Managing clinical budgets and maintaining quality health services are also their responsibilities.

Health unit supervisor vs patient care manager salary

Health unit supervisors and patient care managers have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Health Unit Supervisor	Patient Care Manager
Average salary	$74,174	$65,369
Salary range	Between $50,000 And $108,000	Between $36,000 And $117,000
Highest paying City	San Francisco, CA	Oakland, CA
Highest paying state	New Hampshire	California
Best paying company	Tesla	Accenture
Best paying industry	-	Health Care

Differences between health unit supervisor and patient care manager education

There are a few differences between a health unit supervisor and a patient care manager in terms of educational background:

	Health Unit Supervisor	Patient Care Manager
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 54%	Bachelor's Degree, 45%
Most common major	Nursing	Nursing
Most common college	University of Michigan - Ann Arbor	University of Pennsylvania

Health unit supervisor vs patient care manager demographics

Here are the differences between health unit supervisors' and patient care managers' demographics:

	Health Unit Supervisor	Patient Care Manager
Average age	47	47
Gender ratio	Male, 35.1% Female, 64.9%	Male, 17.1% Female, 82.9%
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, 11.5% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 15.0% Asian, 7.4% White, 61.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%
LGBT Percentage	12%	12%

Differences between health unit supervisor and patient care manager 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.

Patient care manager example responsibilities.

Manage complicated cases involving serious injuries, medical evacuations, cruise ship disembarkation, and repatriation of remains with compassion.
Direct oversight of all case management and education relate to chronic disease and primary care management.
Utilize resources such as financial and pharmacy assistance for uninsure patients to receive professional medical care upon discharge.
Prevent unnecessary hospital admissions using keen assessment skills and redirecting to PCP's office when appropriate.
Ensure compliance both with HIPAA and CMS, to include all audits and enrollments via Medicare.
Plant and maintain flower beds such as mulching, fertilizing, watering, mowing, and pruning.

Health unit supervisor vs patient care manager skills

Common health unit supervisor skills

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

Common patient care manager skills

Home Health, 15%
Patients, 12%
Quality Care, 8%
Social Work, 7%
Community Resources, 4%
Substance Abuse, 4%

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Executive Management Industry
Health Unit Supervisor
Health Unit Supervisor vs Patient Care Manager

Updated January 8, 2025

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