Use outside data to set MSP salaries

Over the past four decades, medical staff services has evolved from a clerical field into a multifaceted career path. However, a paucity of occupational data and the occasional flare-up of an outdated attitude about the niche profession can pose challenges for the healthcare executives and HR professionals tasked with determining appropriate pay grades for MSPs.

Use the following salary-setting strategies, which come courtesy of Merella Schandl, BS, CPMSM, CPCS, an independent consultant and NAMSS instructor based in Columbia, Illinois, to educate key stakeholders on MSP payment structures and to advance personal compensation conversations.

• Promote pay parity across interrelated departments: When establishing a pay scale for MSP positions, look to other departments with similar functions, such as health information management, quality, and risk management.
• Collaborate with similarly situated facilities: Solicit wage data from HR departments in nearby facilities that are comparable in size, service scope, and organizational structure. To uphold confidentiality, request salary ranges, rather than specific rates, for a given role or employee.
• Mine major data sources: Conduct targeted searches (e.g., by region and job title) on websites that aggregate employer-reported compensation data, such as www.salary.com.

Source: 2016 MSP Salary Survey Special Report