Health Unit Coordinator Job Puts You Front and Center

If being at the “center of it all” sounds like the healthcare job for you, consider being a health unit coordinator or HUC. Because of its interface with a multidisciplinary team, it’s the ideal entry-level move that will provide you an introduction and perspective on other healthcare jobs. It might become the job you get and never leave.

As a HUC, you’ll handle nonclinical or non-direct patient care and coordinate activities of the unit or department that include answering phones and call lights, paging physicians and other providers. You may also inform nurses of new orders and arrivals, changes in patients’ diets, medications or schedules, and generally work as the sole practitioner on a given shift. You may maintain adequate levels of supplies and keep track of electronic equipment.

You’ll work at the “hub spot” as the go-to person for staff, patients and families. You may find health unit coordinators also referred to as:

• Business Specialist
• Certified Unit Coordinator
• Clerical support associate
• Critical Care Coordinator
• HUC Manager
• HUC Resource Liaison
• Nursing Unit Clerk (NUC)
• Unit Coordinator
• Unit Hospitality Associate/Unit Secretary

Start here

“No other position within healthcare has so much interaction with other professionals,” says Patty Rice, manager for the National Association of Health Unit Coordinators, Inc. “And unlike other jobs, it requires a manageable investment in education and training.”

Education to become a HUC is for the most part a certificate program at a technical or vocational school, says Rice. No bachelor’s degree is required, although an associate’s degree or on-the-job training are preferred, but not required. Salaries average around $15.00 an hour.

The association says certification by the NAHUC Certification Board provides proof to your employer, other health care professionals, the public, and your peers that you have demonstrated the basic knowledge and skills. The exam is prepared, administered, and graded by a testing agency, Applied Measurement Professionals (AMP).

You’ve got answers

With you functioning as a liaison, the job entails dedication to an organized, efficient delivery of care, while facilitating a flow of communication and information.

“Everybody comes to you,” says NAHUC President Juliann Olsen, HUC supervisor at Primary Children’s Hospital in Salt Lake City. She’s been there for 36 years and has worked as a HUC for 28 years. Olsen is located in the children’s surgical unit and sees patients who’ve undergone appendectomies, heart transplants, or craniofacial surgeries—of the skull and face.

If you’re a people person, can exhibit patience, articulate yourself well, and meet and greet with a smile, you’ll put those traits to good use as a HUC. “Know how to listen and prioritize, because so many people will ask you questions,” Olsen says. “You don’t always get people at their very best, and maybe they’re upset or irate. You need to show empathy for all of them.”

As might be expected, with so many players on the team, conflicts can arise. “If this happens in front of the desk where others can see, I ask them to take the discussion somewhere else in private to discuss differences,” she says. “I encourage them to be respectful and work it out, for it’s not up to us HUCs to decide what’s right or wrong.”

With a sea change occurring within healthcare systems that rewards increased efficiencies, Olsen notes that patients don’t stay as long as they used to. Increased turnover—just like a peak flu season—makes things more hectic for everyone.

Bring it on

Further east, Bill Shy agrees that with Olsen that HUC is a very fulfilling profession. A HUC for more than 30 years, he worked in surgical intensive care before spending 15 years in a progressive cardiac unit, his current assignment.

Shy says the job is an ideal outlet for his motivation to be very involved. “I’ll bend over backwards if I see something that needs to be done,” he says, even on the days when pressure is intense. “I like the fast pace, and the busier it gets, the happier I am.”

He appreciates the teamwork aspect of his job, and welcomes opportunities to pick up extra shifts. “From the moment I punch in to punching out, if I see a problem I try to take care of it myself,” Shy says. He’s actually won a few awards that recognize his enthusiasm and professionalism.

Technology changes protocols

As healthcare adapts to new technology, so does the job of HUC. Now when a physician, nurse practitioner or physician assistant enters a patient’s order, it goes directly to the lab. Formerly, the HUC transcribed the order, says Olsen.

Now the process is more appropriately termed order management, and the HUC ensures the order actually “happens,” says Rice. “We see HUCs more involved in customer service, also tracking numerous safety concerns and quality control initiatives,”

Plus, not everything is automated, she says. “Maybe a patient is ordered to fast before a procedure, or other ‘prep’ is required, or a specimen needs to be collected. The HUC makes sure the meal is held, or that nurses have supplies they need.”

For sure, as a health unit coordinator, the job is never dull, and it may be ideal for you.

With plenty of great HUC jobs here on Monster, chances are there’s one with your name on it right now.