Medical care administrator vs nursing director

The differences between medical care administrators and nursing 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 medical care administrator and a nursing director. Additionally, a nursing director has an average salary of $87,643, which is higher than the $70,177 average annual salary of a medical care administrator.

The top three skills for a medical care administrator include patients, patient care and home health. The most important skills for a nursing director are patients, term care, and home health.

Medical care administrator vs nursing director overview

	Medical Care Administrator	Nursing Director
Yearly salary	$70,177	$87,643
Hourly rate	$33.74	$42.14
Growth rate	28%	28%
Number of jobs	166,249	76,956
Job satisfaction	-	5
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 50%	Associate Degree, 44%
Average age	47	47
Years of experience	6	6

What does a medical care administrator do?

Medical care administrators are professionals who are responsible for the daily operations of hospitals and other healthcare facilities by performing administrative duties. These administrators are required to monitor the budget of every department while preparing reports about their findings. They must develop work schedules for all hospital employees and informing them about the institute's policies and other changes. Medical care administrators must also coordinate with physicians, nurses, and other healthcare professionals to discuss and identify their issues and needs.

What does a nursing director do?

A nursing director's role is to oversee and evaluate all nurse staff in a hospital or organization, ensuring their efficiency at providing care towards patients. A nursing director's responsibilities mainly revolve around administrative tasks such as coordinating with physicians and other consultants, producing reports, conducting assessments, managing the budget and expenditures, and resolving issues. Furthermore, a nursing director must keep and maintain accurate records, ensuring all procedures adhere to the highest health standards and aligns with the hospital's policies and regulations.

Medical care administrator vs nursing director salary

Medical care administrators and nursing directors have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Medical Care Administrator	Nursing Director
Average salary	$70,177	$87,643
Salary range	Between $43,000 And $113,000	Between $64,000 And $118,000
Highest paying City	Eugene, OR	San Francisco, CA
Highest paying state	Oregon	California
Best paying company	UCI Health	Oculus
Best paying industry	Insurance	Health Care

Differences between medical care administrator and nursing director education

There are a few differences between a medical care administrator and a nursing director in terms of educational background:

	Medical Care Administrator	Nursing Director
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 50%	Associate Degree, 44%
Most common major	Nursing	Nursing
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	University of Michigan - Ann Arbor

Medical care administrator vs nursing director demographics

Here are the differences between medical care administrators' and nursing directors' demographics:

	Medical Care Administrator	Nursing Director
Average age	47	47
Gender ratio	Male, 28.2% Female, 71.8%	Male, 11.6% Female, 88.4%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 10.7% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 14.8% Asian, 7.9% White, 61.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%	Black or African American, 11.5% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 14.7% Asian, 7.5% White, 61.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%
LGBT Percentage	12%	12%

Differences between medical care administrator and nursing director duties and responsibilities

Medical care administrator example responsibilities.

Experience with various payer sources to include Medicare, Medicaid, and manage care entities.
Manage medical records in accordance with federal and state HIPAA guidelines, maintaining confidentiality of patient information.
Manage and facilitate manuscript preparation of oncology clinical trials results arising from currently market and pipeline drugs.
Maintain working knowledge of Medicare/ Medicaid, HIPPA and SSI/SSDI.
Prepare radiology films that have to be read for doctor.
Review and send out payroll and memos to all providers on a bi-weekly basis.

Nursing director example responsibilities.

Manage FTE'S of the units.
Manage FTE numbers by following staffing grids.
Lead in the implementation of whole house telemetry.
Manage and provide inpatient nursing care for all aspects of general surgery.
Manage and coordinate all aspects of nursing and ancillary services for successful operation of the SNF.
Complete comprehensive assessments for all LTC residents which include managing falls, pain, skin integrity, and medications.

Medical care administrator vs nursing director skills

Common medical care administrator skills

Patients, 21%
Patient Care, 13%
Home Health, 9%
Financial Management, 3%
Regulatory Compliance, 3%
Quality Care, 3%

Common nursing director skills

Patients, 16%
Term Care, 8%
Home Health, 7%
Resident Care, 6%
Rehabilitation, 5%
Infection Control, 5%

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Medical Care Administrator
Medical Care Administrator vs Nursing Director

Updated January 8, 2025

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