T92 HCO 601 Foundations of Operational Excellence in Health Care

Students will learn the fundamentals of operational excellence principles and how the organizational complexities, regulatory and economic framework, and nuances of healthcare impact the ability to apply them. Students will research and explore both healthcare and non-healthcare examples of performance improvement and operational excellence efforts within different organizations and from different stakeholder perspectives. Throughout the course, students will gain an understanding of how the various methods, both social and technical, can play an integral role in achieving operational excellence, and how to identify and mitigate challenges and barriers. Specific methods will include facilitating teams, change management, lean, six sigma, project management and the importance of principle-based deployments rooted in changing behaviors and transforming culture. By completing this course, students will understand the level of personal transformation in mindset and skills that will be necessary to successfully impact the changes needed for health care operational excellence.

Credit 3 units.

T92 HCO 602 Navigating and Facilitating Organizational Change

This course examines the relationships between employees, organizations, and teams. Students will learn the art of facilitation including managing conflict, achieving consensus, and running effective meetings. The course addresses how to get things done when facilitators or teams lack leadership or authority. Supporting topics include how to build teams, build relationships beyond the team, and keep teams effective over their life span. Students will explore change theories and strategies for creating sustainable change.

Credit 3 units.

T92 HCO 603 Lean: Process Improvement in Health Care

Lean is a methodology that is based on principles of value, process mapping, standardization, flow, pull, perfection, and a relentless focus on the voice of the customer. It has been successfully adapted for healthcare, helping organizations reduce waste, improve flow, promote safety, and improve quality of care. The student will learn Lean methodology and the related tools. Additionally, students will practice applying lean tools to case study simulations. Students will learn how to overcome common barriers to Lean methodology such as resistance to change, cultural barriers, difficulty in sustaining change, and lack of leadership commitment.

Credit 3 units.

T92 HCO 604 Six Sigma: Methods to Reduce Variation in Health Care

This course provides an overview of Lean Six Sigma and the DMAIC process (Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve and Control). Six Sigma is a continuous improvement methodology that primarily focuses on identifying and reducing variation in a process. Six Sigma in healthcare can address the toughest challenges facing healthcare and communities today-examples include health disparities, emerging infectious diseases, safety concern such as medication errors, falls, and hospital acquired infections. Students will learn how the methodology serves as an infrastructure to facilitate improvement in outcomes by healthcare organizations. Case studies, rich class discussion, and the application of tools using simulation will prepare students to successfully implement Six Sigma in their work environment.

Credit 3 units.

T92 HCO 605 Business Essentials in Health Care

This course provides an overview of the evolution of the healthcare delivery landscape and an understanding of current challenges facing healthcare leaders. Students will explore how to employ performance improvement tools to mitigate challenges and increase value, improve patient experience and outcomes.

Credit 3 units.

T92 HCO 606 Innovation and Human-Centered Design

This course provides an overview of approaches to design thinking - a process of identifying, creating, and implementing solutions. Healthcare needs a "human-centered" design approach to navigate the blurring of lines between product and service, provider and patient. Through an experiential approach, students learn methods for understanding users' needs and requirements, synthesizing complex information, identifying guiding principles for design, generating ideas, prototyping, and communicating solutions. Emphasis will be placed on how to build stakeholder personas and requirements as well as how to map their emotional experience with a process to gain more insights than a quantitative analysis alone. Students explore the role of this process through readings, case studies, lectures, and project-based learning.

Credit 3 units.

T92 HCO 607 Project Management in Healthcare

This course is a practical experiential orientation to project management. Students will be introduced to the art of being a project leader. The competencies and emotional intelligence needed to effectively manage a project will be examined. The science of traditional project management methodologies will be discussed. Participants will engage in project initiation and project planning using case studies and/or simulation. Students will learn and apply skills to align key stakeholders. The course will integrate core concepts of initiating change, portfolio and program management, business analysis, performance improvement, and effective facilitation.

Credit 3 units.

T92 HCO 610 Lead Yourself - Then Lead People and Teams

This course examines how the ancient principles of Aristotle's Rhetoric, Ethos, Logos and Pathos, can be applied to the 21st century organizational leader as a powerful framework for creating an effective and robust leadership voice and presence that brings credibility, influence, effectiveness, and success and positions the leader to create the greatest level of value for the organization and its shareholders. The course provides students with a solid roadmap that will guide them in creating an individualized Presence plan rooted in personal application and continued growth. The psychology of change and skills to lead teams will be explored. Students will be able to identify and adopt evidenced based leadership strategies to ensure success as a leader in healthcare.

Credit 3 units.

T92 HCO 684 Capstone Seminar

This course serves as the culminating and integrative experience of the Healthcare Operational Excellence Program. The course will review and re-emphasize the important learnings that students have experienced throughout the program. They will prepare for and apply the knowledge and skills in the workplace. The student will learn important leadership skills to effectively lead change, promote innovation, and be successful in today's healthcare environment. The students will also gain a broader understanding of employee engagement and exceeding customer expectations. Finally, the course will lay the groundwork for the Capstone Project.

Credit 3 units.

T92 HCO 685 Capstone

The capstone project course helps students integrate knowledge from the program courses and demonstrate mastery of operational excellence through a workplace project. Students will work individually or in multidisciplinary teams to deliver the final project. The course will employ a highly participative, hybrid approach to delivery, combining synchronous online learning with asynchronous virtual learning and homework assignments to give the student a complete education experience that will enhance their learning. Sponsorship, coaching, and mentoring is provided to the student throughout the project experience to enhance learning and the opportunity for success.

Credit 3 units.

T92 HCO 699 Applied Research Study

Applied Research Study (ARS) is an advanced, project-based course designed to allow students to develop in-depth knowledge and further their education building on the education offered in the Programs. Applied research is a type of examination looking to find practical solutions for existing problems. These can include challenges in the workplace, education, and society. Students collaborate with an adjunct faculty advisor to collect data. Findings are applicable and may be implemented upon completion of a study. Applied research focuses on answering one specific applied research question for a client or sponsor. Applied Research Study must have prior approval of a faculty sponsor and the Program Director.

Credit 3 units.