Health-care organization presidents have many titles: CEO, vice-president or executive director, to name a few. All refer to their ultimate responsibility for the success of their medical facilities and their final authority over staff performance, operational efficiency and profitable finances. Their jobs require long hours but are compensated with relatively high salaries.

Salary

Presidents of health-care organizations earned a mean $162,910 per year, as of May 2012, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Only the salaries of anesthesiologists, surgeons and other medical doctors were higher. Health-care presidents made slightly less than the mean annual $176,840 for all chief executives. The highest salaries for the top executives were in securities and commodities brokerages, averaging $232,020 per year.

Hospitals

Hospitals are the typical health-care organization requiring a president's management. They are in a broad category that includes general medical and surgical institutions, psychiatric and substance-abuse facilities, and specialty centers. Presidents at all hospitals earned a mean $198,340 per year. Pay varied according to funding source. Privately-owned hospitals showed the highest mean salaries at $203,800 per year, hospitals owned by local government averaged an annual $175,900, and state-government owned hospitals averaged the lowest means of $166,250 yearly.

Comparisons

A subcategory of hospitals features the highest salaries for health-care organization presidents: general medical and surgical institutions. In state-owned institutions, pay was $215,470 per year, while in privately owned institutions, yearly wages averaged $206,080. The lowest salaries were outside the hospital category: child day-care services, averaging an annual $52,750, and services for seniors and people with disabilities paid an average $62,680. To earn these salaries, presidents need a minimum bachelor’s or master’s degree in business administration, hospital administration or public administration. They also require several years of related work experience, by which they receive promotions to positions of increasing responsibility.

Outlook

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, presidents in health-care organizations are predicted to see job increases of 20 percent from 2010 to 2020, with those in charge of mental health organizations enjoying the highest increases of 53 percent. These increases are part of a general demand for health-care services due to a baby-boomer population that is aging. Older populations need more medical services, which doctors can provide. Compare these numbers to the projected 4 percent increase in jobs for all chief executives. Generally, jobs for organizational presidents do not increase as quickly as other jobs in an industry. Though a company may continue to grow and add facilities, it can only have one person at the top.