The MHA curriculum provides the educational and professional foundations for leadership in health services.

“The healthcare system is inherently complex. Navigating it and effectively getting anything done requires a set of tools, training in the MHA, expertise, and critical thinking to navigate it. The [UBC] MHA is the only program established that focuses exclusively on leadership and management within health care and combines academic rigor with real examples from the system that are current including faculty who are both academic and seasoned leaders.”

Jennifer Duff, RN, BSN, MHA, MBA
Chief Operating Officer, BC Mental Health and Substance Use Services (PHSA)
Adjunct Professor, School of Population Health

Program Requirements

Students complete 24 courses (1.5 credits each) spanning health systems, policy, and management, preparing them to navigate the complex challenges facing health care today. Students also complete a 6.0-credit capstone project that explores a problem or issue related to health care administration.

Graduates of the program are prepared to:

Navigate the political, economic and social influences within a rapidly changing health care system
Improve the quality of care and health outcomes for patients in diverse health care settings
Make strategic decisions in the face of increasing demands on the health care system
Draw upon the expertise of multi-disciplinary healthcare teams to implement solutions to persistent health care system problems

Learn from experts in their field

Instructors in our program come from a collaboration with the School of Population and Public Health under the Faculty of Medicine and the Sauder School of Business along with honorary lecturers who bring expertise from their professional practice.

All first and second year courses are offered once per academic year. MHA students are required to take all courses at the time they are scheduled for their assigned cohort.

Focus on dedicated competencies and knowledge areas

Graduates leave the program with competencies uniquely designed for health care leadership across three domains from the National Centre for Health Care Leadership (NCHL) – transformation, execution and people, preparing them to:

Lead change processes through analytical and financial thinking in a strategic orientation
Translate vision and strategy towards optimal organizational performance with communication skills, performance measurement and project management
Create collaborative environments with human resource and change management

Course Profiles

Basic Finance – SPHA 501

To be effective, health care managers must have the financial literacy to make well-informed and thorough decisions.

Accounting – SPHA 502

A basic understanding of balance sheets and budgets are a must for managers to fully consider the impacts of their decisions.

Canadian Health Policy – SPHA 510

Understanding the way the Canadian healthcare system has evolved and how its currently structured broadens your understanding of policy dilemmas we face.

Government and Policy – SPHA 511

Modern managers need to understand the government-business relationship in order to help their organizations anticipate and react to government interventions.

Organizational Behaviour – SPHA 521

It is people, not organizations that care for patients, find opportunities for improvements, and make critical decisions.

HR Management – SPHA 522

The capacity to implement health care services relies on people working together for patients, making human resources strategies a key management concept.

Economic Evaluation – SPHA 531

Economic evaluation of health interventions provides a powerful tool to address questions on cost effectiveness.

Health Economics – SPHA 532

Economics is about the use of scarce resources in an efficient and equitable way.

Health Care Priority Setting – SPHA 533

Being a leader requires knowing how to apply specific tools, criteria and strategies to set priorities and make decisions about needs, problems and goals.

Operations and Logistics – SPHA 542

Operations management considers how systems work and how we can make them better.

IT for Management – SPHA 543

From e-health apps to eletronic health records, health information technology permeates throughout people’s health and healthcare.

Health Information Systems – SPHA 544

More and more healthcare organizations are relying on the expertise of individuals trained in health informatics

Design and Measurement – SPHA 551

It is important for health care administrators to develop a deep understanding of epidemiology to focus on delivering services to populations rather than individuals.

Program Planning and Evaluation – SPHA 553

Using the proper tools for program planning and evaluation leads to better decisions that improve the effectiveness and efficiency of health care services, and ultimately better outcomes for patients.

Statistics – SPHA 554

Biostatistics – SPHA 555

Statistics is the subject that allows us to explore any topic with a quantitative glee, and health care is no exception.

Social Determinants of Health – SPHA 556

Social determinants of health considers why health differences matter on ethical and practical grounds, and how can we act to effectively intervene on these differences.

Quality of Care – SPHA 557

Quality and safety in patient care requires managers and clinicians who are equipped to lead organizational efforts.

Strategic Management – SPHA 561

Regardless of what role you envision yourself holding in an organization, a solid understanding of strategy is essential if you are going to contribute to major decisions.

Health Care Law – SPHA 562

Health care professionals and administrators alike benefit from an understanding of the Canadian legal system as it relates to clinical practice and policy making.

Ethics and Ethical Decision Making – SPHA 563

Educating thoughtful and responsible leaders includes developing an awareness and ability to respond to ethical issues commonly encountered in the health care setting and facing health care administrators.