Master of Healthcare Administration

Excel & lead with a master’s in healthcare administration

Franklin University’s Master of Healthcare Administration (MHA) program provides the essential knowledge required for you to undertake senior managerial and planning work in a variety of healthcare settings. You can move through our MHA degree program swiftly, realizing the real-world benefits of your degree in as few as 16 months, which is faster than many other programs. And, if you qualify, GMAT and GRE requirements may be waived, allowing you to begin your program of study immediately, without a long-preparation cycle.

Program Overview

Get credit for what you know – before you even take your first class. Franklin demonstrates its commitment to ambitious adults by honoring their previous professional experiences and credentials, which includes national certifications. If you have earned certifications through professional organizations including the Healthcare Information Management Systems Society (HIMSS), the American Health Information Management Association (AHIMA), the American Hospital Association (AHA), or the American Association of Healthcare Administrative Management (AAHAM), you may be able to transfer in up to 8 credits, which equates to two of the 10 courses required for the MHA degree.

Uniquely designed for the busy professional, our healthcare administration master's courses are planned and updated in accordance with the changing healthcare environment. In addition to preparing you for executive-level positions, you’ll be challenged through an array of academic methodologies, including case studies, lectures, group assignments, and community and healthcare projects. You’ll also be exposed to trending marketplace topics, such as healthcare reform, health information technology, and accountable care organizations (ACOs).

Program Outcomes

  1. Recognize and articulate facts, concepts, and procedures related to healthcare administration theories and practices

  2. Integrate healthcare administration theories, principles, and practices for future application

  3. Systematically apply communication, technical, analytical knowledge, and critical thinking skills to administrative and clinical healthcare related problem-solving

  4. Evaluate the effectiveness of the plans, development, and implementation of healthcare administrative solutions

  5. Design and create solutions to address and solve societal, cultural, and environmental healthcare issues

Curriculum & Course Descriptions

Major Area Required
HCM 733 - Finance and Managerial Accounting in Healthcare Organizations (4)

The purpose of this course is to provide students with the fundamental concepts and calculations associated with financial accounting and managerial accounting within a healthcare organization. Students will study the foundational aspects of financial accounting with a primary focus on financial statements and the uses of the information in these statements. Students will also study the functional aspects of managerial accounting to include cost behavior, cost allocation, pricing, planning, budgeting, profit analysis, and performance evaluation. Application of these concepts will include analysis of case studies.

HCM 735 - Healthcare Delivery Systems (4)

The course provides an extensive overview of leadership in the U.S. health services system. The focus of the course will be on the role health services leadership plays in the delivery of healthcare services, to include managing with professionals, financial management, services utilization, and other aspects of the U.S. healthcare system. The student will explore the key theoretical and practical elements of leadership as well as current issues clarifying how the U.S. health services system is organized, managed, and financed.

HCM 742 - Healthcare Laws and Ethics (4)

In this course students will develop a strong foundation in health law, enabling them to deal with the common legal, practical, moral, and ethical issues that healthcare organizations face on a daily basis. Topics will include statutory law, rules and regulations, tort law, criminal law, contract law, civil procedures, and trial procedure.

HCM 752 - Health Policy (4)

This course will explore the essential conceptual and analytical understanding of health policymaking and politics, including their impact on health administration and leadership. Selected policy issues will be explored through the application of political concepts and behavioral models, including a system model of policymaking. The emphasis will be on understanding the health leader?s approach to the policymaking system, become involved in it, and work through it to attain their objectives and those of their organization.

HCM 762 - Global Health (4)

The student will examine demographic measurements, epidemiological methods, outcomes assessment, health promotion, and disease prevention from a global perspective.

HCM 765 - Healthcare Operations Management (4)

Students will explore concepts and theories of operations management. The student will develop both knowledge and skills in solving the operational problems of healthcare organizations. This course will examine process improvement models that are aimed at improving the safety and quality of healthcare delivery within an organization.

HCM 772 - Healthcare Strategic Management (4)

The student will examine principles of strategic management applied to healthcare organizations. This Capstone course through critical assessments of the real world environment and case studies on strategy formulation, implementation, and evaluation will examine alternative strategic frameworks for healthcare organizations. Topics will include, mission, vision statement development, environmental assessments, analysis of strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats, use of critical success factors, development of business plans, and other techniques for strategic planning and management.

HIM 702 - Health Information Governance (4)

This course covers the broad spectrum of strategic issues in healthcare including policies, guidelines, standards, processes, and controls required to manage and implement enterprise-level information. Treating information as a strategic asset to healthcare organizations, processes to manage various risks to the quality of information and ensure its appropriate use are covered.

Major Electives

At least 4 credits from the following courses:

HIM 710 - Clinical Workflow & Applications (4)

This course explores requirements for clinical workflows in a variety of inpatient, outpatient, and emergency healthcare environments. It covers the documentation, review, mapping, and diagramming of clinical workflow information and processes. The course also covers the linkages between the improvement of patient care to workflow mapping and change management, as part of evidence based decision making in healthcare.

HIM 761 - Healthcare Analytics (4)

This course addresses the process of retrieving, analyzing, and reporting intelligence to make healthcare decisions. It covers the techniques of extracting, transforming and loading data from a myriad of operational databases into corporate data warehouses, as well means to ensure that decision making is based on clean and reliable information. The course also includes ways to report the healthcare intelligence gathered.

GRAD 770 - Lean Six Sigma (4)

The purpose of this course is to train individuals in Lean Six Sigma skills and strategies to improve processes and provide safe, effective care environments. The learner will demonstrate the practical application of tools utilized with Lean Six Sigma methodologies. Students will have the opportunity to apply the knowledge learned during this course concurrently with a case study designed specifically to use Six Sigma methodologies. Students will develop a Lean Six Sigma project plan that can serve as the foundation for completing a major project for Lean Six Sigma certification following the completion of the course. Interested students would need to apply for Lean Six Sigma certification and complete the major project with Franklin University's Center for Professional Training & Development.

HRM 701 - Human Resource Management (4)

This course provides a framework for an in-depth understanding of day-to-day, practical approaches/aspects of problems/challenges that impact the human resource management field. Topics include recruiting, hiring, training, retaining, rewarding, and promoting employees; compensation and benefits; employment planning, performance management systems, and succession planning; labor relations; and managing organizational relationships.

PUAD 701 - Foundations of Government & Nonprofit Administration (4)

As students in PUAD 701, you will examine fundamental public service values that differentiate the mission and purpose of public and nonprofit organizations from that of private, for-profit organizations. The course focuses on applying public administration and organizational theories to analyze administrative problems faced by leaders and managers implementing government and nonprofit programs. You will learn to think systematically about selecting alternative options for delivering public services and improving organizational performance. Finally, you will develop the fundamental computing, writing, information literacy, and presentation skills required for effective academic and professional communication.

PSYC 603 - Managerial Psychology (4)

This course will explore the psychological influences on the development and behavior of managers and organizational leaders. Topics include: follower influences, nature vs. nurture in the development of leaders, relationship of personality to leadership style, behavioral decision- making biases, tactical, operational, and strategic decision-making , group think, and scenario planning.

Optional Focus Areas

Health Informatics:

HIM 710 - Clinical Workflow & Applications (4)

This course explores requirements for clinical workflows in a variety of inpatient, outpatient, and emergency healthcare environments. It covers the documentation, review, mapping, and diagramming of clinical workflow information and processes. The course also covers the linkages between the improvement of patient care to workflow mapping and change management, as part of evidence based decision making in healthcare.

HIM 761 - Healthcare Analytics (4)

This course addresses the process of retrieving, analyzing, and reporting intelligence to make healthcare decisions. It covers the techniques of extracting, transforming and loading data from a myriad of operational databases into corporate data warehouses, as well means to ensure that decision making is based on clean and reliable information. The course also includes ways to report the healthcare intelligence gathered.

Adding a focus area provides an opportunity for customization but is not required for completion of the degree. The focus area may require up to two additional courses. Students may take HIM 710 or HIM 761 as the Major Elective and only need the one additional course to complete the focus area.