Students in the M.S. in Healthcare Management program can choose from two distinct concentrations: Healthcare Leadership and Healthcare Compliance. In each concentration, the program will address the study, application and research of healthcare management within a solid business framework.
Each concentration comprises 15 business core courses (30 credits), one capstone course (4 credits) and four concentration courses (8 credits) for a total of 42 credits.
The program’s healthcare-specific courses in disciplines such as economics, law, information systems, marketing, policy, supply chain and strategic management mean that students are thoroughly equipped with business-centered healthcare knowledge and skills, including:
All healthcare management courses are presented 100 percent online in five-week modules, with 24/7 access to video-based lectures and an interactive learning environment. No campus visits are required, ensuring students can pursue a prestigious credential from an internationally recognized research university without diminishing their professional commitments.
First semester | 2 credits
Learn strategies for dealing with cognitive biases, making unrecognized assumptions, determining causality, navigating pathways in critical reasoning and maximizing reasoning effectiveness. Apply innovation principles for developing and implementing innovative designs, processes and leadership in healthcare.
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First semester | 2 credits
Discover the role of workforce leadership in fulfilling the goals and mission of healthcare organizations. Learn about the theories and applications of organizational behavior principles to motivating, rewarding and structuring employees’ work; managing groups and teams; and structuring the organization.
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First semester | 2 credits
Understand the legal and ethical doctrines, principles, applications and issues in healthcare organizations. Explore the legal and ethical dimensions of decision making, administrative law and planning in healthcare.
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Second semester | 2 credits
Overview of the concepts and methods of business analytics as it relates to healthcare management. Examination of the role of analytics in transforming the business practice of healthcare, including a better assessment of cost effectiveness, learning curves in the practice of medicine, identifying best practices for evidence-based medicine.
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Second semester | 2 credits
Topics include A) cost analysis: cost estimation, cost allocation and cost behavior; B) pricing: revenue management and strategic product-mix decisions; C) profitability: analytical techniques for determining profitability of departments, services and patients; D) control: budgeting, variance analysis and coordination of activities among departments; and E) contracting with suppliers and insurance companies.
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Second semester | 2 credits
Learn financial management tools for investment and financing decision-making in healthcare firms. Explore risk, valuation and capital budgeting. Understand how to analyze the financial condition of the firm through the examination of financial statements.
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Third semester | 2 credits
Explore how to manage healthcare performance by means of quality initiatives, process management and risk management. The course will focus on relevant methods, principles, processes, strategies and systems thinking.
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Third semester | 2 credits
Review issues in the management and implementation of healthcare information systems and application of information technologies to support the effective and efficient delivery of healthcare work processes to stakeholders. Explore the relationship between quality management and information management. Learn about technology standards, security, emerging technologies and healthcare analytics.
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Third semester | 2 credits
Discover the role of human resource management for healthcare organizations. This course focuses on strategies for human resource recruitment, utilization, productivity, compensation and development.
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Fourth semester | 2 credits
Understand the organization of the U.S. health system, policy process and services. Review the dynamics of economic theory, valuation, financing and delivery of healthcare.
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Fourth semester | 2 credits
This course examines ways top managers create and sustain competitive advantage in today’s challenging healthcare marketplace from a total firm perspective.
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Fourth semester | 2 credits
Review the concepts and tools of supply chain management related to healthcare settings. Topics include management of resources, sourcing, operations, inventory, logistics and capacity for effective services, quality and cost performance.
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Fifth semester | 2 credits
Explore the principles and processes of marketing and its role in effectively managing healthcare services for improvement and policy making.
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Fifth semester | 2 credits
Discover the patient experience in healthcare as it relates to hospitality marketing, service quality management, patient well-being and the role that leadership plays in the process.
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Fifth semester | 2 credits
Review the epidemiological concepts for decision-making in healthcare organizations. Assess managerial strategies for applying population health principles to disease assessment, community forecasting, cost effectiveness and utilization of services.
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10 weeks | 4 credits
The capstone class integrates the coursework, skills and perspectives in the program in a project, paper or practicum. The capstone is intended to bring cumulative knowledge to culmination on specific healthcare management issues, dilemmas and gaps. Each capstone project, paper or practicum must be approved in writing and overseen by a faculty member.
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The following courses are required to complete the leadership concentration.
Sixth semester | 2 credits
Review leadership theories and practices as applied in healthcare organizations. Develop leadership skills.
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Sixth semester | 2 credits
Explore the process of strategic decision-making in healthcare organizations. Identify issues that impede and improve decision success. Examine a range of contextual factors that influence the decision process.
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Sixth semester | 2 credits
Review the techniques, systems and formats to comprehend healthcare market forces and develop value-based healthcare marketing plans.
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Seventh semester | 2 credits
Explore the fundamentals of effective negotiations in healthcare organizations. Learn how to plan for negotiation, integrative and distributive negotiation strategies, power and influence, ethics and interpersonal communication.
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The following courses are required to complete the compliance concentration.
Sixth semester | 2 credits
Examine the role of regulations in the healthcare industry, focusing on standards of regulatory and accreditation organizations. Explore regulation in relationship to organizational culture and performance.
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Sixth semester | 2 credits
Explore the importance of compliance in healthcare organizations. Topics include effective healthcare compliance, governance issues, fiduciary responsibilities and challenges faced in the healthcare industry.
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Sixth semester | 2 credits
Enterprise risk management (ERM) is a systemic approach to mitigating risks associated with doing business in the healthcare industry. This course will examine the best approaches, academic and practical, to creating and implementing an ERM system.
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Seventh semester | 2 credits
Change in healthcare is a constant. Students need to understand how to keep their organizations compliant with new requirements. This course will challenge students to consider health regulation in general and how to use these regulations as a strategic advantage. The course covers implementation, execution and enforcement of healthcare compliance programs.
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