Quality and Safety in Healthcare Management

MSc
Healthcare management

Course details

The MSc in Quality and Safety in Healthcare Management offers you advanced education in the use of quality improvement tools and interventions that are specific to quality, safety and risk in the healthcare sector.

Throughout the programme you will acquire a deep understanding of core concepts around patient safety, quality, accreditation and governance. Following the completion of the six taught modules, you will further enhance your skills by leading a change project aimed at addressing, quality, health and safety issues in healthcare.

Graduates of this programme are better placed to ensure the delivery and configuration of high-quality health services, and to lead change projects and other development initiatives in their fields. They are also equipped to specialise in formal quality and safety roles.

Suitability

All those working in the healthcare sector including doctors, managers, nurses, interdisciplinary health and social care workers, allied health professionals, other clinical specialists and administrators who wish to develop their knowledge and skills in the management of quality and safety in healthcare. Personnel in allied health businesses such as medical supplies and equipment, as well as the pharmaceutical sector, and particularly healthcare regulators should also find the programme highly relevant.

Mode of delivery

This course is delivered in a digital format via our online teaching platform, making it accessible to busy healthcare professionals wherever they may be working.

This programme will provide you with the skills and knowledge to:

  • Develop participants as reflective critical practitioners with the knowledge, insight and skills to determine the threats to quality and safety, and the contributory factors therein, and to identify appropriate evidence based solutions for different levels of the healthcare system.
  • Develop participants’ knowledge of quality, safety, leadership and management competencies to enable them to lead teams to improve and assure healthcare standards.
  • Develop skills in quality and safety planning, implementing, monitoring and measurement, including the management of accreditation processes, to proactively assure the quality and safety of care.
  • Develop a critical understanding of safety culture, driven by learning and accountability, and how such a culture can be fostered and maintained; as part of a collective approach to governance alongside patients and public, ensuring that quality and safety improvement is underpinned by current policy and best practice.
  • Demonstrate the ability to speak up and to question processes, policies and procedures as part of safety and improvement work.
  • Develop participants’ confidence and skills in evaluating and applying quality and safety research and tools to the management of healthcare.
  • Develop a strategic mindset and awareness of the relationship between human factors, staff wellbeing and patient safety in the design, implementation and monitoring of quality and safety initiatives in the health services.
  • Recognise the importance of organisational resilience, critical reflection and facilitated discussion in individual and organisational learning from positive and negative events in healthcare.

The MSc in Quality and Safety in Healthcare Management will be facilitated in a digitally engaged format via our online teaching platform and will be delivered though a blend of online content and activities and live interactive sessions, to offer a collaborative and supportive student experience.

Our experienced team have the skills and technology to provide a rich and engaging online experience and will be on hand to smooth your course for success as you commence your studies, no matter what your level of technical ability.

Students will have the opportunity to become part of an international, healthcare focused, learning community, as they are supported to engage through collaborative group work, team building and networking opportunities – benefiting from each other’s experience in a safe and supported environment.

Module 1: Introduction to Quality & Safety in Healthcare
(10 ECTS)

This module will provide you with an introduction to the concepts of quality and safety in healthcare within your national healthcare system. The paradigms of Safety I and Safety II are explored and models for learning from error and successful care are applied to practice. The evolution of quality and its pioneers are addressed, as are the catalysts and drivers for quality. The dimensions of quality, as viewed by key influential thinkers, are debated and applied to the various areas of practice.

Module 2: Tools & Frameworks for Quality
(10 ECTS)

This module will help you to further develop team working skills and use quality improvement methods to foster a culture of person-centred quality care. You will explore measurement for improvement techniques and the role of dynamic data in quality management. You will examine structure, process and outcome as key areas of safety and quality. Incorporating staff engagement techniques, you will systematically apply quality tools and techniques to your everyday work practice.

Module 3: Leadership & Strategic Management
(10 ECTS)

This module will explore different approaches to leadership and your preferred leadership style. You will learn how to design and implement strategy using a wide variety of tools to understand the external environment and assess the internal strengths and weaknesses of your organisation. You will further explore case based learning and will have an opportunity to apply learning to your setting.

Module 4: Accreditation & Standards
(10 ECTS)

In this module you will discuss the accreditation process as an external audit of quality. National and international systems will also be explored. Models of accreditation and standard setting will be examined for appropriateness and applied to your work setting. This module will also assist you to further develop your communication and influencing skills. You will be introduced to debate as a learning strategy in this module.

Module 5: Clinical Governance
(10 ECTS)

The focus of this module is on providing you with the knowledge and skills to implement a safe and quality service using a clinical governance approach. Clinical incident reporting, risk management, integrated care pathways and legal issues will be addressed. You will also gain the skills of poster presentation. Building on preceding modules, approaches to learning and implementing actions after events are addressed using scenario-based learning techniques will be explored.

Module 6: Evaluation Measurement & Research
(10 ECTS)

In this module, you will focus on how to gather, analyse, interpret and present data in the context of quality and safety. You will learn about using data for improvement, accountability and research. Audit, performance indicators, understanding variation and the use of research methods in quality improvement and safety monitoring are key topics. You will participate in an inter-professional quality improvement journal club and will learn how this model may be applied to practice. Activities draw on the principles of co-design and the habits of improvers.

Action Learning Sets and Action Research Project
(30 ECTS)

In order to fulfil the requirements for an MSc Degree, you must complete the six modules outlined above and conduct a change management project in your organisation. This component of the programme is facilitated via action learning sets.

Use your learning from Year 1, in conjunction with Year 2 seminars dedicated to the leadership of change, to develop and direct your own change project.

In collaboration with your work-based manager you will select a project designed to produce benefits to your organisation, such as process improvements or resource restructuring, that are likely to result in substantial cost savings.

With the support of a dedicated Action Learning Set comprising a small group of fellow students, you will lead the selected organisational development project within your own workplace setting. The set will also support you to produce a dedicated project report with a reflective account based on your ongoing diary notes and a poster for display.

Year 2 of the programme is an exciting and beneficial opportunity for students dedicated to leading local healthcare change.

Participants on our MSc programmes in the past have produced considerable developments in their organisations and many projects have resulted in significant improvements, substantial cost savings and publications in management journals.

Assessments

Assessments take the form of case studies, applied group and individual assignments, change projects, examinations and poster presentations. You will also participate in debates and action learning sets.

We are proud to be a recognised University of the National University of Ireland (NUI). All RCSI programmes are accredited by the NUI.

Recognition by Ministries and bodies in all jurisdictions must be determined by the individual applicants.

We are pleased to confirm that a number of our recent graduates, that are domiciled in the United Arab Emirates and in the Kingdom of Bahrain, have successfully had their certificates recognised by the Ministry of Education in their respective countries.

Learn more

Our team would be delighted to answer any questions that you may have regarding this programme. Please contact our teams in Dublin and Dubai for more information.

Contact us