Managed care nurses could be thought of as educators to the
general public in that their job consists of teaching patients
about good health, illness prevention, and self-care. These nurses
help lower health care costs by raising awareness about good health
practices. As opposed to the majority of nurses that work primarily
in hospitals, managed care nurses tend to work for HMO’s (health
maintenance organizations) and health insurance companies. Nurses
in this field additionally assist health care providers in creating
the best policies for the health of their clients.
Managed care nurses are expected to be efficient in their
actions and to continually improve the lessons that they teach to
patients. They must be knowledgeable about the potential benefits
and risks behind every health care decision that they guide their
patients to make.
This job involves extensive paperwork and a swift pace, but many
in the field of managed care nursing find their job to be rewarding
in the same manner that a teacher finds the education of their
students to be a joy. Managed care nurses administer to patients of
all ages and generally work regular hours. Because managed care
nurses attend to a variety of people on a regular basis, nurses
that are capable communicators are usually the most successful.
Managed care nurses find themselves encountered with numerous
problems every day that they must be able to approach and overcome,
so excellent problem-solving skills are vital. These nurses also
should be calm, diplomatic, and caring towards their patients.
Managed care nurses must be an RN (registered nurse) with an ADN
(Associate’s Degree in Nursing), a BSN (Bachelor of Science in
Nursing), or a degree from an accredited nursing school. The
average starting salary for a managed care nurse ranges from
$36,000 to $45,000 per year. More experienced nurses in this field
make about $64,000 annually.
There are few jobs as rewarding as managed care nursing. Nurses
in this field are able to bestow the gift of education on their
patients, and these nurses have the pleasure of knowing that the
lessons they teach benefit numerous people over the course of their
entire lives.
