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Master of Health Administration (MHA): Curriculum

Curriculum Details

47–52 total credits required

Become an agile leader during a transformative time for healthcare with the online Master of Health Administration.

You’ll take 16 courses, including one internship with 150 hours of fieldwork. Optionally, you can choose from two specializations that add nine credits to your curriculum.

The online MHA is founded on Jesuit principles and accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Health Management Education (CAHME).

Foundation Courses

This required graduate course studies organizations, with special interest in health care organizations. Topics include strategy, goals, technology, size, design, adaptation, decision making, control, culture, processes, politics, conflict, learning, and inter-organizational relations. Conceptual foundations come from organizational theory, management science, systems theory, sociology, and psychology. There are no pre-requisites.

Designed to increase analytical and decision-making skills using finance theories, principles, concepts, and techniques important to health management. This course integrates and applies financial management concepts and techniques relevant to health care settings. Topics include: analysis of cost and budgetary controls, interpretation and utilization of accounting reports and statements, operating accounting measurements, quantitative techniques, analysis of financial statements, financial decision-making models, auditing, capital investments, strategic financial management, working capital management, and budgeting.

Designed to examine basic statistical techniques which are utilized in analyzing health care data. Topics include probability, sampling, use of central tendency measures, reliability and validity, graphics, data display, frequency distribution, regression analysis, ANOVA, and technical report writing.

This required graduate course studies managerial epidemiology, access to care, health services, health providers, workforce, technology, financing, insurance, health policy, health planning, quality, and the evolution and structure of the U.S. health care system. Conceptual foundations come from systems theory, epidemiology, sociology, political science, and economics.

Core Courses

Impact of legal factors affecting patient/client care and the operations and administration of healthcare facilities and systems. Examines principles and practices of law, legal relationships, sources of law and legal processes affecting the health services system. Conceptual foundations are drawn from the political sciences.

Examines human resource management functions, processes, and systems within organizations including recruitment, selection, training of personnel, and the legal and regulatory environment affecting HRM operations. Managing and developing human resources within and between systems/organizations is also studied. Organizational performance and creativity are examined.

This required graduate course studies theoretical foundations of economics and public policy and applies them to the healthcare sector. The course examines provider behavior, production, costs, supply, market structure, competition, access, demand, insurance, expenditures, utilization, healthcare reform, and the healthcare-public-policy making process including policy formulation, implementation, and modification.

Micro and macro organizational behavior theories provide the theoretical foundation for this course. The processes of communication, value analysis, problem solving, and decision making are explored at an individual, team, and organizational level. The imperative for healthcare leaders to understand and manage change will be emphasized. Various models of leadership will be critically analyzed. Conceptual foundations are drawn from the social sciences, psychology, and related disciplines.

This required graduate course is the capstone course. Students apply and integrate knowledge, theories, principles, methods, skills, competencies, values, and viewpoints developed throughout the curriculum to resolve health administration case studies and to complete an applied health administration project.

This required graduate course studies the purpose, function, and application of planning and marketing in health care. Content includes strategic planning, situational analysis, strategy formulation, action planning, exchange, buyer behavior, segmentation, market research, products/services, pricing, distribution, promotion, and marketing control. Selected theoretical concepts are drawn from disciplines such as economics, psychology, and sociology.

Designed to increase analytical and decision-making skills using finance theories, principles, concepts, and techniques important to health management. This course integrates and applies financial management concepts and techniques relevant to health care settings. Topics include: analysis of cost and budgetary controls, interpretation and utilization of accounting reports and statements, operating accounting measurements, quantitative techniques, analysis of financial statements, financial decision-making models, auditing, capital investments, strategic financial management, working capital management, and budgeting.

This course studies fundamental principles, concepts, and approaches regarding health care operations management, quality management, and process improvement. The systematic approach to quality includes patient safety, clinical process improvement, and credentialing.

Prerequisites: Permission of instructor, or HAD 500 or MGT 505, HAD, 501, HAD 519 and HAD 521

This course utilizes a systematic approach to study health care information technology management. Topics include terminology, organization, strategy, planning techniques, systems selection, contract negotiation, project management, medical informatics, technology trends, and issues for health care.

The course will introduce the student to the presence of basic ethical concerns in the practice, distribution, and administration of healthcare. Current knowledge, scholarship, and the practical nature of the subject are examined through consideration of ethical theories, current professional readings, and a variety of cases.

A 150 hour fieldwork placement in a staff or administrative position which is usually completed during a regular academic session. A semester project and preceptor designation is required.

A 1,000 hour fieldwork experience in a senior management position. Normally involves exposure to all major operating functions and contacts with department heads, administrative staff, and medical staff. Includes exposure to governing-board functions, governmental forces, and community influences. The resident is assigned projects of increasing complexity and importance and is expected to have an assigned preceptor. A major project is required. The residency is usually completed during two semesters.

Allows the student to pursue an area of interest under the guidance of a faculty member. Approval by the Program Director is required.

Advanced Electives

Operating and administrative issues and problems in health and hospital systems with emphasis given to hospital operation, organization, and administration. The future role of acute care is examined in the context of integrated delivery models and systems.

Examines factors influencing physician practices and the quality of physician services. Topics include operating and administrative issues, compensation, staffing, billing, collections, reimbursement mechanisms, and governance. The course also examines PHOs, HMOs, SDOs, MSOs, and other integrated delivery networks, organizations, and systems affecting physicians.

Operation and administration of long term care facilities. Differences between acute and long term levels of care, types of long-term care facilities, and special concerns of the long-term-care resident. Emerging models of care are discussed in addition to traditional management functions in the industry.

This course provides an introduction to global healthcare services and systems. Provides a foundation for comparing and analyzing cultural, historical, geographic, environmental, economic and political factors that influence health. Examines determinants of health and illness, health status, public health, health policy and global healthcare management.

A health administration elective course focusing on the development, integration and application of knowledge, reviewing request for proposal requirements, work plans and evaluation plans, concepts in formatting, grant writing principles, methods, techniques, competencies, and developing a rationale needs statement, draft proposal, budget, and final proposal to secure a competitive grant.

Health Informatics Specialization

This course provides an introduction to the health informatics discipline, as the foundation for further study in this inter-professional /multidisciplinary field. This course traces the history of health data management and the role of the Electronic Health Record (EHR) and other clinical informatics applications in healthcare organizations. This course provides knowledge essential for self-selection of subspecialty or pursuit of general practice within the health informatics field. Emphasis is given to clinically transformative technologies, communication processes and information practices in health care.

This course explores population health from a systems and organizational perspective with an emphasis on health information technology. Research in health care is analyzed in relation to evidence-based practice, use of large databases, data mining, consumer information, health promotion and maintenance, and quality assessment. The management of health data in the achievement of healthcare organization objectives is emphasized.

Prerequisite: HINF 545

This course focuses on the relationships between information and federal, state, and enterprise policy, governance, compliance, and usage. Topics such as data provenance, integrity, warehousing, and quality are explored. Emphasis is also placed on interdisciplinary management processes and organizational planning and decision-making in relation to health informatics.

Prerequisite: HINF 545

Global Health Specialization

This course provides an introduction to global healthcare services and systems. Provides a foundation for comparing and analyzing cultural, historical, geographic, environmental, economic and political factors that influence health. Examines determinants of health and illness, health status, public health, health policy and global healthcare management.

This course focuses on global health care services and systems in South America. A foundation for understanding, comparing, and analyzing South American countries is provided. Context includes reference to Central America and the Caribbean region. Emphasis is placed on population health, health disparities, tropical medicine, services and systems, and health management strategies. International travel is required.

Global health care services and systems in Europe is emphasized. A foundation for understanding, comparing, and analyzing European countries is provided. Focus on public health, determinants of health and illness, health status indicators, health policy, how health care services and systems are organized, structured, financed, and delivered. International travel is required.

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