Location: Online
Start Term: Fall, Spring, Summer
You have the power to shape your career and make your mark on the future of healthcare and health professions education as a scholar-practitioner who addresses complex problems of practice.
This part-time program builds on your master’s degree and your professional experience so you can advance your career with a concentration in academics or administration.
As a student, you will experience a curriculum that focuses on interprofessional practice, research, and scholarship. As a researcher, you will integrate and apply evidence in the pursuit of solutions to the complex challenges facing healthcare and education. As a graduating scholar-practitioner, you will change the face of healthcare delivery and health-professions education through your incorporation and dissemination of knowledge in practice.
Concentrations
The DHS program is designed to empower leaders in healthcare and health professions education. Students enhance their DHS degree by choosing a leadership-focused concentration in healthcare management, health-professions education, public health, or patient safety and quality improvement.
Leadership in Healthcare Management Concentration: Designed for healthcare professionals who wish to advance into a leadership role through concentrated study of healthcare delivery systems, organizational thinking, operations management, and legal aspects of healthcare administration. Graduates with this concentration are able to assess complex organizational issues in healthcare and present evidence-based solutions.
Leadership in Health-Professions Education Concentration: Designed for clinical educators who wish to gain knowledge in the areas of health-professions higher education, program development and accreditation, and departmental leadership or scholarship in academic health settings. Graduates with this concentration practice interdisciplinary and interprofessional leadership in pursuit of sustainable change in educational and health services institutions. They also demonstrate innovative leadership in the practice of health-professions education.
Leadership in Healthcare Quality and Safety: Designed for professionals in patient safety and quality improvement who wish to gain knowledge in areas of medication safety, patient safety, and quality improvement. Graduates are change agents, improving healthcare through the application of knowledge and research to complex problems related patient safety and quality improvement.
Leadership in Public Health: Designed for professionals who are focused on public health issues and the protection of populations around the globe. Graduates with this concentration improve public health through the application of research and scholarship. This concentration builds on the significant relationship between population health and the health professions by focusing on disease transmission, promoting health and wellness in communities, and advancing health equity across the globe.
Study Online
The DHS program coursework is entirely online, empowering students to balance career advancement with their busy lives. Designed for the working professional, including faculty members, managers, researchers, and industry professionals, the DHS program enables students to continue working full time while focusing on their doctoral studies.
On average, students should expect a commitment of nine hours per week per course.
A Focus on Interprofessional Education
The DHS program is focused on preparing students for the realities of healthcare and health professions education by emulating the interprofessional nature of today’s healthcare workforce. Faculty and students in the DHS program come from a variety of backgrounds and fields, bringing their own unique perspectives, as well as a truly collaborative and cross-disciplinary context, to the program.
Learn more about the Doctor of Health Sciences program.
- Earned a master’s degree or doctorate from a regionally accredited university or recognized foreign university
- A minimum overall GPA of 3.0
- Proof of license or credential in healthcare and three to five years of health-related work experience
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Core
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Title
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Credits
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HSC 701
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Introduction to Doctoral Studies
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3
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HSC 718
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Qualities and Characteristics of Leadership in Healthcare
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3
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HSC 722
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Leading with Vision and Direction in Healthcare
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3
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HSC 742
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Contextual Leadership
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3
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HSC 763
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Managing Crisis, Conflict and Change in Healthcare
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3
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HSC 805
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Literature Review and Focused Research
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3
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HSC 820
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Qualitative Research Methods
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3
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HSC 825
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Quantitative Research Methods
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3
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HSC 830
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Research Design Seminar
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3
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HSC 850
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Proposal Development
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3
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HSC 860
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Seminar I: Proposal and Data Collection
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1
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HSC 880
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Seminar II: Research Findings
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1
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HSC 890
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Seminar III: Discussion & Defense
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1
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Elective Courses (6 credits)
Students select 6 credits of elective coursework at the graduate level. Course subjects can include:
- Regulatory Affairs (DRA)
- Healthcare Administration (HCA)
- Medication / Patient Safety (MSM)
- Public Health (PBH)
- Others with approval of the program director.
Doctoral Concentration (15 credits)
Students select their concentration to best match their professional practice goals.
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Academic Health Sciences (15cr)
- HSC 710 – Health Prof. Education
- HSC 720 – Health Prof. Program Dev.
- HSC 730 – Educational Leadership. Dept. & School
- HSC 735 – Class & Clinical Sim Learning
- HSC 740 – Educator Competencies
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Healthcare Management (15cr):
- HCA 710 – Systems of Healthcare Delivery
- HCA 720 – Org & Systems thinking
- HCA 730 – Operations Mgt.
- HCA 760 – Legal and Ethical Considerations
- PBH 815 – Mass Comm & Health
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Public Health (15cr)
- PBH 710 – Intro. Health Policy & Mgt.
- PBH 750 – Community Hlth Science
- PBH 755 – Health Promotion & Ed
- PBH 760 – Program Design, Rsch, & Eval
- PBH 815 – Mass Communication & Health
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Healthcare Quality and Safety (15cr)
- MSM 701 – Intro to Quality (2cr)
- MSM 702 – Intro to Medication Safety (2cr)
- MSM 703 – Communication & Team Approach (2cr)
- MSM 704 – Safety Tools, Applications, and Analysis (3cr)
- MSM 830 – Measurement, Error & Improvement (3cr)
- HCA 752 – Quality Improvement (3cr)
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