Industry Profile: Public Health Administration
This guide will help you find the information you need to start working in British Columbia. You can use the menu buttons to move between sections of the guide.
Overview of Public Health Administration
Professionals in public health administration work to improve the welfare of the community at large, serving as leaders of public sector and nonprofit organizations that provide health services and share information about health and wellness. Public health administrators possess the expertise and insight necessary to manage the people, finances, and information that support public health programs and initiatives.
In BC, there are two broad sectors that comprise Public Health Administration:
- Health Care and Social Assistance
- Public Administration
Health Care and Social Assistance
Health Care and Social Assistance is one of BC’s largest employers with 325,300 total employment in 2020. This industry has a low unemployment rate and tends to be immune from economic fluctuations. Most jobs in this industry are located in the Mainland / Southwest, including Metro Vancouver, Vancouver Island/Coast and Thompson-Okanagan.
The health care and social assistance industry provides diagnosis, treatment and residential care for medical reasons and social assistance.
Health care organizations include hospitals and clinics, ambulances, nursing or residential care homes. This industry is crucial for treating and maintaining the health of residents and non-residents in B.C. Health care establishments provide care for individuals who seek services for prevention, diagnosis or treatment from health care professionals, including doctors, lab technicians, dentists, optometrists and chiropractors.
Social assistance organizations offer direct services to their clients, such as counselling, welfare, child protection, child care, home care, housing and food services.
It is difficult to separate the social assistance occupations from health care occupations because many of the services provided by each are interconnected.
In BC, health care is provided by the Ministry of Health working with seven health authorities:
- provincial health services authority, including BC Cancer Agency, BC Children’s Hospital, BC Emergency Health Services, and more
- five regional health authorities: Fraser, Interior, Island, Northern, and Vancouver Coastal
- First Nations health authority
Social assistance in BC is provided through several provincial ministries including:
- Ministry of Social Development & Poverty Reduction
- Ministry of Children & Family Development
- Ministry of Mental Health & Addictions
As B.C.’s population continues to age, Health care and social assistance will see the largest increase in job openings in 2021-2031. Of these openings, 60 per cent will come from the need to replace retiring workers, while the remaining 40 per cent will result from expansion of the health system in response to the growing medical needs of an aging population and the expansion of the care economy.
Source: BC Labour Market Outlook, 2021 edition
Detailed Industry Forecast of Employment in Health Care Sector (BC)
Health Care and Social Assistance – Employment Outlook
Source: WorkBC
Health Care and Social Assistance Industry – Hourly Wages
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Public Administration
In BC, the Public Administration sector is made up of agencies that are engaged primarily in activities of a governmental nature. Such activities include keeping public order and safety, drafting and enacting legislation, administering and collecting taxes, working in national defence, providing immigration services, and administering government programs.
Total employment in 2020 was 119,700.
Around half of employment in this industry is located in the Mainland / Southwest including Metro Vancouver, Vancouver Island and Thompson Okanagan regions.
Public Administration – Employment Outlook
Public Administration – Hourly Wages
For more information see: