Quality, Patient Safety, Case Management & Compliance salary guide

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Published BLS wages for this family. BLS OEWS May 2025.

Chief Quality Officer SOC 11-9111, Medical and Health Services Managers. broader match.
Director of Quality SOC 11-9111, Medical and Health Services Managers. broader match.
Patient Safety Officer SOC 11-9111, Medical and Health Services Managers. broader match.
Director of Accreditation & Regulatory Readiness SOC 11-9111, Medical and Health Services Managers. broader match.
Infection Preventionist / Director of Infection Prevention SOC 29-1141, Registered Nurses. proxy match.
Risk Manager SOC 11-9111, Medical and Health Services Managers. broader match.
Chief Compliance Officer SOC 13-1041, Compliance Officers. broader match.
HIPAA Privacy Officer SOC 13-1041, Compliance Officers. broader match.
Director of Case Management SOC 11-9111, Medical and Health Services Managers. broader match.
Case Management Manager SOC 11-9111, Medical and Health Services Managers. broader match.
Director of Utilization Management SOC 11-9111, Medical and Health Services Managers. broader match.
Director of Care Management / Population Health SOC 11-9111, Medical and Health Services Managers. broader match.
HEDIS / Stars Quality Manager (Health Plan) SOC 11-9111, Medical and Health Services Managers. broader match.
Director of Patient Experience SOC 11-9111, Medical and Health Services Managers. broader match.
Quality Improvement Manager SOC 11-9111, Medical and Health Services Managers. broader match.

What work sits inside this family?

These roles cover quality review, patient safety events, accreditation readiness, privacy work, case review, and compliance oversight. On a normal day, the person reads charts, tracks trends, leads meetings, and documents follow-up. We look for sound judgment, steady records, and direct communication with nursing, physicians, and administrators.

The title changes by setting. A hospital may need a quality leader or patient safety officer. A health plan may need a quality manager or compliance leader. We focus on the work and reporting line, not only the title.

Which titles belong in this search?

This family often includes Chief Quality Officer, Director of Quality, Patient Safety Officer, Risk Manager, Chief Compliance Officer, HIPAA Privacy Officer, and Director of Case Management. It can also include infection prevention leadership and population health quality roles. We sort the search by who this person reports to and what they review each day.

Some jobs sit close to operations. Others sit close to board reporting, audit response, or privacy complaints. That difference changes the profile you should ask for.

What does the role do on a normal day?

The person may review incident reports, follow open action items, prepare for committee meetings, and speak with unit leaders about trends. They may also update policies, respond to chart audits, work on regulatory files, or review readmissions and denial patterns. The work is part analysis and part follow-through.

In case management, the day often includes discharge planning, payer calls, and coordination with social work or nursing. In compliance, it may mean hotline review, privacy concerns, training records, and corrective action tracking. We ask how much of the day is hands-on review versus team leadership.

Who owns the decisions in these jobs?

The leader usually does not own every clinical decision. Physicians, nursing leaders, and unit managers still make care decisions. This hire owns the review process, the written follow-up, committee work, and the escalation path when a trend needs action.

That split matters during hiring. We ask who signs off on policies, who presents to leadership, and who closes a case or event file. If the person must influence without direct authority, we look for that skill early.

What should you ask before you open the role?

Start with the daily workload, the reporting line, and the tools already in place. Ask whether the person will cover one facility or several. Ask what meetings they attend, who they brief, and how often they report to executives or physicians.

We also ask about survey history, audit load, privacy volume, and open projects. That tells us whether you need a builder, a steady manager, or a turnaround hire. The same title can mean very different work in different settings.

When does this family need a new hire?

You usually open the search when survey prep slips, event follow-up piles up, or reporting stops reaching leaders on time. You may also need a change after a compliance concern, a merger, a service-line expansion, or a gap in case review coverage. The right hire brings order to the workstream.

If the role is temporary, we can help with non-permanent coverage. We arrange locum tenens, travel and contract coverage on request. Credentialing, licensing and malpractice coverage are confirmed per engagement before anyone starts.

What else should you ask about this edition?

How do we know whether this is a quality leader or a compliance leader?

Look at the first three tasks the person must own. If the job centers on surveys, event review, and committee reporting, it leans quality. If it centers on audits, privacy, policy review, and corrective action, it leans compliance.

What should a physician-owner ask in the interview?

Ask how the candidate handled a recent issue from start to finish. You want the steps, the people involved, and the final follow-up. Ask who they must influence when they do not have direct authority.

How does a case management leader differ from a quality leader?

Case management focuses on patient flow, discharge planning, and payer communication. Quality work focuses more on trends, events, and formal reporting. Some teams cross over, but the daily work is not the same.

When should we widen the search beyond one title?

Widen the search when the job scope is bigger than the market title. A director title may need both committee leadership and hands-on review work. If the opening touches several areas, we often review nearby titles with you.