New healthcare management degrees at Daytona State address projected job openings

Daytona State College enrolls more than 1,500 students in bachelor's degree programs and announced recently it is adding a new concentration to it's B.A.S. program in healthcare management.
Daytona State College enrolls more than 1,500 students in bachelor's degree programs and announced recently it is adding a new concentration to it's B.A.S. program in healthcare management.

Starting in fall 2022, Daytona State College will add another new concentration, healthcare management, to its stable of bachelor's degrees.

The new program is in response to one of the fastest-growing occupations, particularly in aging Volusia and Flagler counties, college officials said.

"It's a growth rate of 30.1%, which is much faster than average," said Colin Chesley, associate vice president who oversees the College of Health and Public Services at Daytona State College. “The reasons for that are because of the aging population, the longer life expectancy and expansion of services.”

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The Florida Department of Economic Opportunity lists medical and healthcare managers as the 11th fastest growing occupation in Volusia County, with 452 projected job openings over the next seven years. At an annual hourly wage of $47.29, those jobs are higher paying than any of the other occupations in the top 10, which includes restaurant cooks, nurse practitioners and massage therapists.

Colin Chesley is an associate vice president responsible for the College of Health and Public Services at Daytona State College.
Colin Chesley is an associate vice president responsible for the College of Health and Public Services at Daytona State College.

The B.A.S. in healthcare management will likely appeal to two types of people, Chesley said. One is clinicians with two-year degrees, people who work with patients in hospital settings, such as sonogram technicians, radiologic technologists and respiratory therapists, to name a few.

The pandemic has "exponentially" sped up the number of clinicians who are wanting to move into non-care management positions.

"There are a lot of clinicians who are dissatisfied for whatever reason … or they’re burned out," Chesley said. "There’s high clinician burnout. We’re hearing a lot about that."

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DSC has graduated more than 1,000 people in its two-year, allied health programs, and just 4% have returned for a B.A.S. degree.

"With the healthcare management concentration, we believe that will appeal to a lot of those graduates who want to come back and advance, because … a lot of those (A.S. programs) don’t have a bachelor’s completion option," Chesley said.

The other group of students who might opt for the healthcare management program are associate of arts students who want to go straight into healthcare management.

"Maybe they want to go work in the business office, or they want to become a long-term care administrator," Chesley said. "This will give them a chance to earn that degree as well."

The bachelor's of applied science in supervision and management was the college's first four-year program, first offered in 2005, and it's proven to be the most popular.

Chris Thomes, director of marketing and communications, said of the 10,000 four-year degrees DSC has awarded over the past 16 years, about 6,000 of them have been in supervision and management.

Max Nagiel, chair of the School of Business Administration, said the B.A.S. program was the first of its kind in the Florida College System.

Max Nagiel is a senior professor and chair of the Daytona State College School of BusIness Administration.
Max Nagiel is a senior professor and chair of the Daytona State College School of BusIness Administration.

“It is generally a good program, one that is tailored for the non-traditional working student. And we have seen some growth over the years," Nagiel said.

The college's advisory boards, comprised of industry leaders in the Volusia-Flagler area, have suggested the college offer more specialized training for various administrative careers, including management, hospitality, project management, human resources and supply chain.

Robin King, president and CEO of CareerSource Flagler Volusia, said the projected number of healthcare job openings across Volusia and Flagler counties in the next year will top 3,900, with the greatest need in hospitals but also in physicians’ offices and nursing care facilities.

She cited a recent U.S. News & World Report analysis of the best communities for retirement.

“With Daytona Beach being No. 3 in the country for retirement, our healthcare capacity is definitely going to need to grow with that," King said.

And a Florida Chamber Foundation report pointed to healthcare as the sector with the greatest potential for job creation in Volusia and Flagler counties.

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This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: DSC will offer healthcare management bachelor's program in fall 2022