1
GEORGE MASON UNIVERSITY
Health Systems Management Program
Capstone Practicum Project Course
HSCI 710
Academic Course Faculty
TBA
Background Health Systems Management Degree
Program Overview
The aim of the Masters of Science in Health Systems Management is to prepare working
professionals in the Health Care field with the knowledge and technological tools necessary
for executive management of health related organizations, as health policy analysts or
managers of information system application in healthcare.
Curriculum/Program of Study
The curriculum is designed to prepare health professionals with knowledge, skills and
abilities that serve as a basis for continuous professional growth in Management practice.
The curriculum integrates a wide variety of concepts selected from a variety of disciplines:
Business management, economics, philosophy, organizational behavior, information
technology, social psychology, public policy and law as they apply to leadership and
management of health systems and stewardship of relations with professional providers,
consumers, regulators and policy makers. A detailed description of courses is contained in
the final section of this information document, beginning on page 3.
Practicum Course Information
Objectives of the Management Practicum Project Course
The capstone practicum is a vital part of the curriculum, where students function as an
integral member of an organizational entity and work 20 hours per week to complete a
project assigned by the agency. The objective of the practicum project course is to enable
students to build on their theoretical preparation to:
1) Develop leadership skills, management skills and systematic problem/issue analysis
skills through direct participation in management activities in a business or health related
organizations;
2) Obtain practical information and knowledge about various aspects of developing
products, analyzing opportunities and managing various aspects of work in business/ health
related enterprises, or public policy making entities;
3) Utilize research, communication, presentation and writing skills to complete a project
deliverable as requested by the host agency.
Practicum Supervision
Students are supervised in the practicum by the academic advisor and a host agency
preceptor/mentor. Duties for the faculty advisor and agency preceptor follow:
Responsibility of the GMU Faculty Advisor (TBA)
Work with students to:
1
2
1. Clarify and understand the objectives of the practicum;
2. Develop individualized goals for the practicum;
3. Recommend texts, readings and other resources as appropriate to the setting and the
problem/work under study;
4. Maintain regular contact with the student during the practicum;
5. Be available to preceptor on an as needed bases during the practicum;
6. Evaluate the student’s final deliverable and obtain feedback from preceptor to
determine grade for the course.
Responsibility of the Preceptor/Mentor (Host Agency Preceptor)
1. Identify a suitable project, based upon initial identification of a specific management
problem area or opportunity issue (likewise for a health policy issue);
2. Provide recommendations to the student to obtain a self-directed orientation to the
agency/organization;
3. Discuss with or involve the student in relevant organizational meetings;
4. Meet regularly with student during the practicum (minimum of every three weeks).
Meetings should allow for discussion of the preceptors current assignment(s) and
ongoing challenges and issues impacting the host agency. Should include a
discussion of the students project (i.e., progress);
5. Upon course completion, give feedback to the faculty advisor on the student’s
practicum performance.
Student Orientation, Project and Access to Meetings
A major component of the practicum is the assigned project that gives practical
experience to ensure that the student gains a well-rounded experience. The project should
be sufficiently complex and comprehensive to afford adequate contact with a variety of
different situations and with various departments and or stakeholders. It is recommended
that the project assigned would allow the evaluation and resolution of a specific
management/organizational issue or to develop a proposal or background document
related to a particular organizational need or opportunity.
Upon identification of the project, the student will prepare a statement of work to be
completed and a detailed description of the final deliverable. The student will also
identify with input from the preceptor, the frequency and form of regular progress reports
(including interim project reports) that the preceptor and agency may expect.
Access to Agency/Organization Meetings
The student can benefit by attendance at a variety of meetings within the organization
and in the community. Students have been instructed that the subject matter discussed at
all organizational meetings and related to all institutional correspondence and data is
sensitive and always deemed confidential.
Student’s Background
Preparation for the Practicum Project Course
2
3
Prior to the practicum, students have completed all program course work As a result of
prior working experience in the health field and in academic courses to date, students are
prepared to independently assume a project of complexity and importance to the
organization assigned. Academic courses that students will have completed are described in
the section that follows:
Academic Course Descriptions
Course Number PUAD 620 (3:3:0)
Course Title: Organizational Behavior
A lecture and seminar course in which students explore management and leadership theory applied to roles and
strategy in complex organizations. Students integrate and apply selected leadership and organization theories to
analyze organizations. The utilization of organizational analyses as Action Research and its use by practicing
executive managers in health care organizations is prioritized.
Course Number: HSCI 701 (3:3:0)
Course Title: Quantitative Decision-Making/Biostatistics in Health Systems Management
A survey course using an epidemiological framework to explore selected quantitative methods in addressing
management problems and decisions in health care systems. Students acquire skills in the application of
analytic techniques as employed to support decision making in health care systems related to cost-benefit
analysis, reducing clinical variability, program and decision analysis using system and population based data.
Also the application of forecasting, linear programming, and selected biostatistical techniques as applied in
management of health systems is covered.
Course Number: HSCI 702 (3:3:0)
Course Title: Managerial Accounting in Health Care Organizations
A practical examination of the controllership function in health care organizations and systems (profit and not
for profit) with emphasis on policy formulation and evaluation of performance, including cost methods and
systems, measurement criteria, and managerial planning, methods and techniques.
Course Number: HSCI 703 (3:3:0)
Course Title: Financial Management of Health Systems
An examination of the tools and methods of financial management in Health Care organizations and systems
with emphasis on allocation and use of funds; costs and constraints of alternative source of funds and the
application of financial decision instruments and their effect on operational management and market value.
Course Number: HSCI 704 (3:3:0)
Course Title: Contemporary Issues in Health Systems Leadership and Management
Analysis of management theory and practice from recently evolving works that identify, analyze and resolve
strategic organizational problems and issues in health care systems. Applied leadership strategy to effectively
manage a variety of critical issues in health are systems, such as: Organizational development, change
management, human relations and diversity, quality management for organizational and clinical effectiveness,
technology management, management of conflicting constituencies, delivery system redesign
and applied health services research is covered.
Course Number: HSCI 705 (3:3:0)
Course Title: Strategic Management and Marketing in Health Care
The purpose of this course is to develop executive skills for strategic decision making through the use of
marketing based tools and techniques as applied in Health Care Systems: Strategic planning, market research
and opportunity/risk analysis, customer assessment, market segmentation and life cycle assessment for health
care services in managed care and non-managed care environments.
Course Number: HSCI 706 (3:3:0)
3
4
Course Title: Integrated Health Systems Management
Exploration of emerging structures for financing and delivery of comprehensive health services in integrated
health systems. Successful development and management of alliances, provider hospital organizations and
managed care systems with an emphasis on strategies for vertical integration, community partnering, contract
negotiation, governance and management of antitrust situations.
Course Number: HSCI 707 (3:3:0)
Course Title: Health Care Management Policy, Law and Ethics
A survey course that prepares Health Care executives to understand selected legal and ethical principles as
applied to complex decision making and policy analysis in the management of health care organizations and
systems. Legal relationships (torts and contracts) and ethical references will be used for selective managerial
application in the analysis and management of organizational and clinical dilemmas, statutory and regulatory
trends and the management of scarce resources and interdisciplinary teams in Health Systems.
Course Number HSCI 708: (3:3:0)
Course Title: Health Informatics
An introduction to Health/Medical Information Systems with emphasis on systems analysis and design to
support managerial and clinical communications and decision-making. Explores trends and innovations in
information technology and systems, focusing on the managerial oversight of healthy/medical information
systems. Includes review and analysis of the issues and uses of databases and database management systems
for clinical and managerial transactions and decisions in healthcare organizations and integrated health systems.
Course Number: HSCI 709: (3:3:0)
Course Title: Quality Management of Health Services
Examines the operations research and quality management functions of a Health Care/Service Organization
from a strategic viewpoint. From the perspective of the Healthcare Manager, explores the contributions of
operations research and quality management to improve delivery and production of Health Services and
Business processes. Explores contemporary performance measures (quality and productivity) useful for
improving process performance and selected decision support system methods from operations management.
Number: HSCI 715: (3:3:0)
Course Title: Health Economics
The emphasis of the course is to give Healthcare managers an understanding of economic efficiency in the
US health system. Microeconomic methods are used to examine markets and resources in health and
medical care. Health care is examined as a commodity and the demand for health and medical care
services, provider behavior, and the function and behavior of insurance markets is explored. Current topics
such as financing arrangements and trends, insurance reform, rationing, price regulation and provider
competition are included. Economic justification of the Government role and involvement in financing and
regulating health care is examined through historical and current health reform proposals.
Number: HSCI 712: (3:3:0)
Course Title: Health Services Research
Students will learn the role of Health Services Research in policy and in evidence based management and
clinical practice. Students will learn to formulate a problem, to conduct online searches of published
literature to describe the state of knowledge in the field, to conceptualize the research project, to conduct
analysis so secondary data, to design an experiment, and to conduct evaluation research. Students will learn
to organize presentation of research and methods of feedback. Course includes analysis of secondary data.
Course Number 710 (3:2:6):
Course Title: Health management Practicum
Prerequisites: Last semester of program (completion of all course work except HSCI 712
Catalog Description:
4
5
A field practicum in health management, problem analysis and project management in a Health related
organization. Individuals or learning teams define a complex problem in the assigned facility and conduct an
analysis of the problem with recommendations for management decision action. Analysis of the problem
provides the context in which theoretical concepts and management skills are applied to conduct the project.
Practicum seminar uses case study analyses to explore problem solving approaches in a variety of situations
and Health Care/Service Organizations.
Course Objectives:
1. Apply theory selectively, to explore and analyze organizational behavior, leadership, management,
policy and infra-structure in the Health Care/Service Organization;
2. Demonstrate effective functioning as a member of a learning team to conduct an organizational
project;
3. Utilize selected managerial and administrative skills to conduct a problem focused analytical
project for the organization;
4. Selectively employs data collection methods (i.e. from marketing, operations research, quality
management, epidemiology) to qualify/quantify the problem and feasible options;
5. Based on the results of the problem/organizational/market analysis, and considering the
Organization's strategies and resources, recommends one or more feasible courses of action for
implementation;
6. Analyzes pertinent interdisciplinary literature and research findings for significance/application
within the context of the practicum project and case study analyses.
5