The 36-credit MHA program is delivered either
fully online or in the classroom. It can be completed part-time in as little as
two years or full-time in 12 to 18 months.
MHA COURSE DESCRIPTIONS
GMHA 601-Introduction to Health Systems Organizations and
Management (3 credits)
This course introduces students to the management of healthcare organizations. It includes an examination of the environments in which the organizations operate, including the following: the types of organizations in the care continuum, types and categorizations
of practitioners and clinicians, and the role of insurers, policymakers and regulators. The course also introduces students to the topic of underserved and vulnerable populations as well as innovation in the healthcare industry. The course also describes
how healthcare services are financed in various delivery models including: The Beveridge Model, The Bismarck Model, The National Health Insurance Model and the Out-of-Pocket Model.
GMHA 603-Healthcare Services Marketing (3 credits)
This course provides students with a thorough understanding of the principles and concepts of health care marketing. Essential elements of marketing are discussed in detail to assist students in applying this knowledge in today’s dynamic healthcare environment.
GMHA 605-Quality Management in Healthcare Services (3 credits)
This course focuses on strategies to measure and improve healthcare efficiency, effectiveness, patient satisfaction, and quality. It considers various quality standards and protocols, preparing the health administrator to gather, assess, and act on data
from a variety of sources. It addresses the role of getting stakeholders engaged to develop a safety culture and to achieve organizational goals that drive recognition, patient safety, and reimbursement.
GMHA 606-Healthcare Information Systems and Technology (3 credits)
This survey and analysis of healthcare information systems planning and leadership prepares health administrators to communicate productively with information technology and clinical professionals. The course explores the challenges of selecting and implementing
information systems to achieve organizational mission. The course focuses on how and from whom health administrators should gather information and judge its veracity. It also considers other organizational data and issues that go into selection decisions
and implementation plans. Attention will be given to various stakeholders and how to manage their impact on IT projects.
GMHA 609-Comparative Healthcare Economics (3 credits)
This course introduces the economic foundations of healthcare based on traditional economic analysis, such as: production functions, marginal analysis, supply and demand analysis, cost-benefit analysis market efficiencies, utility, buyer behavior
and the influence of government policies. This course also investigates, analyzes and compares the economic effects of the four types of healthcare-payer models in use around the word: The Beveridge Model, The Bismarck Model, The National Health Insurance
Model and the Out-of-Pocket Model.
GMHA 610-Healthcare Management and Leadership (3 credits)
This course examines leadership concepts as they apply specifically in healthcare organizations. Topics such as managing change, intra-organizational communication, and high-level decision making are included. The course focuses on building skills to
sort through and make sense of the plethora of information available in making judgment calls. Focusing on leadership, the course goes well beyond management, helping students recognize, building on and enhancing their skills and increase their adaptability.
This course also stresses the importance of identification, empathy, and communication with relevant stakeholders.
GMHA 611-Healthcare Research and Quantitative Methods (3 credits)
This course focuses on the value of various research methods and resulting data for running an efficient and effective organization. The course focuses on the development of skills to assemble and analyze research information. The course acknowledges
that most health administrators will not be designing and running research projects but that they must be able to communicate with researchers in a variety of disciplines. They must be able to recognize quality research protocols and select findings
that can complement data from other disciplines in leadership decision making.
GMHA 625-Healthcare Law and Ethics (3 credits)
This course examines the roles and legal rights of patients, administrators, governing boards, state and federal government, third-party payers, and healthcare providers. It focuses on providing healthcare administrator the knowledge of how and when to
communicate with legal experts and how to use appropriate legal precepts. This course provides an introduction to the concept of ethics in healthcare settings. The course also provides a historical perspective on the development of healthcare ethics,
the role of the ethics professionals, the principles of health care ethics and the connection between ethics, and quality improvement in various healthcare settings. Special topics include liability, risk management, patient-provider relationships,
fraud and abuse, antitrust, and health legislation. This course will also examine selected business law topics including agency and partnership, business corporations, and joint ventures.
GMHA 661-Healthcare Finance (3 credits)
This course explores financial theory and its practical application in healthcare across a full application in healthcare across a full range of facilities, from hospitals and home health agencies to skilled nursing facilities, surgical centers, and private
physician practices.
GMBA 641-Operations and Supply Chain Management (Cross Listed with MBA) (3 credits)
The course is designed to introduce students to the principles of operations and supply chain management and their application in decision making. The topics covered include logistics, transportation, inventory management, warehousing, materials management,
global supply, demand management, project management, e-commerce, finance, and network design.
GMBA 736-Human Resource Management (Cross Listed with MBA) (3 credits)
The knowledge, skills, and abilities of the workers in a firm are its most valuable resource. This course helps students recognize the strategic importance of human resource management. The student will explore contemporary techniques of resource analysis,
testing, recruiting, selection, training, appraisal, and compensation planning, and will integrate these techniques with the strategic focus of the firm.
GMHA 799-Strategic Management (Capstone) (3 credits)
This last course in the Gannon MHA program consolidates learning from every other course in a real-life strategic analysis of a healthcare organization in transition. The course focuses on the main processes in planning and delivering health care to the
community, such as needs assessment, feasibility studies, strategic marketing design, and implementation and evaluation strategies and methods. This course is an application exercise; simulating activities healthcare administrators engage in daily,
pulling information from various sources and packaging it for effective decision making. The course is intended to be a practical, interesting, exciting, and informative culmination for the MHA program.