Coursera: Healthcare Organizations and the Health System

Healthcare Organizations and the Health System

Syllabus

Course Summary

Have you ever been in a healthcare waiting room and thought about how the organization could be
more efficient? For example, have you found yourself thinking about how to reduce the amount of time
spent waiting? Or do you work in a healthcare organization and find yourself thinking about how to
improve the organization? If you have, this course is for you.

Course content includes an overview of healthcare organizations, their administration and management,
and their governance. The course provides links to external sites to connect you to the larger "real
world" of healthcare organizations. The links also serve as resources you can take with you after you
complete the course experience. And because everyone loves a road trip/field trip, there are also
"virtual field trips" to the often hidden places of interest on the web.

The course format is readings, videos, quizzes, and an electronic poster project. The poster project
requires you to synthesize course material to design a healthcare organization and governance structure
the way you would have things run in the best of all worlds. The electronic poster file is an artifact of the
course which you can circulate to colleagues or use for a talk or presentation event.

The course is 4 weeks, 4 lessons, and 4-6 hours of learner work per lesson; total time commitment for
the course = 16 - 24 hours.

Note: The photographer for the course logo shown above is Dmitri Popov and the photo was downloaded from
Unsplash (https://unsplash.com/).

Course Objectives

Course content includes an overview of healthcare organizations, their administration and management,
and their governance. Upon successful completion of this course, a learner will have a better
understanding of healthcare organizations. Learners working within a healthcare organization will be
better able to contribute to the efficient and effective operations of their organization. They will be able
to undertake and improve healthcare administration and management responsibilities within their
organization.

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Specifically, upon successful completion a learner will be able to:

1. Define a healthcare organization, a health system, and their relationship.

2. Define effective evidence-based healthcare administration and management models.
3. Define the forms of organizational governance and functions.
4. Synthesize course content to create a healthcare organization and governance structure.
5. Generate an effective electronic file poster suitable for presentation and printing.
6. Judge the quality (content presentation and format) of a poster.

It is hoped that upon achieving these objectives, the learner will not just know more at the end of the
course than at the beginning, but that the learner will think healthcare organization structure and
governance in new ways. The goal of the course is to enable the learner to think critically about
healthcare organization structure and governance in new and interesting ways.

Relevance of Each Content Section to the Certificate

Each section of the course is marked to indicate its relevance to the work required to obtain the
certificate. The markings are:

 [CERT] which means the section contains work which must be successfully completed to obtain
the certificate.
 [INFO] which means the section provides information relevant to the work required for the
certificate.
 [PREP] which means the section provides practice for the certificate work.
 [FUN] which means the section provides either: 1) interesting additional information which is
supplemental, but not needed for the certificate; 2) an opportunity to post your comments on a
specified topic for discussion with course colleagues, if you choose to do so; or 3) an opportunity
to provide feedback on the course, if you choose to do so.

Six course sections are marked [CERT]. These are:

1. Quiz: [CERT] Lesson One Quiz

2. Quiz: [CERT] Lesson Two Quiz
3. Quiz: [CERT] Lesson Three Quiz
4. Quiz: [CERT] Synthesize Course Content Self-Evaluation
5. Quiz: [CERT] Generate an Effective Electronic File Poster Self-Evaluation
6. Peer Review: [CERT] Poster Submission and Evaluation

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Course Philosophy

The course format and philosophy are a little different from most of the other Coursera courses. Most of
the Coursera courses present course content primarily through video lectures. This course presents
course content through [INFO] readings (text). Links to optional [FUN] material external to the course
are included in the text.

The philosophy behind the use of reading content is that a reading provides a more direct relationship
between the learner and the content than does a video lecture of someone telling the learner about the
content. The readings also allow the use of links to resources and additional content external to the
course. These links allow learners to create their own learning pathway and customize their learning
experience in a way that the video lecture does not. The links make full use of the fact that the course is
delivered online.

Readings [INFO] content is also presented as a series of questions and answers - the Socratic Method.
The philosophy behind the use of this method is that this is a better - and much more interesting - way
for a learner to master content.

There are videos in the course. These are professionally produced videos (e.g., from the Smithsonian,
National Archives) which are included in the course to provide interesting supplemental - optional [FUN]
- content. No video-presented content is needed to complete the work for the certificate. As with the
[FUN] links to external material, the use of these optional [FUN] videos allows learners to create their
own learning pathway and customize their learning experience.

The poster project requires learners to synthesize course material to design a healthcare organization
and governance structure the way the learner would have things run in the best of all worlds. Learners
create their own healthcare organization. The electronic poster file is an artifact of the course which
learners can circulate to colleagues or use for a talk or presentation event. The philosophy behind this
project is that more learning occurs - and learning is more fun - if a learner can actually build/create
something from the course content (rather than just being tested on the content) and show this
built/created artifact to others.

Course is Part of a Specialization

This course is one course in the four-course Healthcare Organization Operations specialization. The four
courses are:

 Healthcare Organizations and the Health System

 Health Care Delivery in Healthcare Organizations
 Business Process Management in Healthcare Organizations

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 Quality Improvement in Healthcare Organizations

Each course is a stand-alone course; the courses do not build on each other - they complement each
other. No one course in the specialization is a prerequisite for another course. If you choose to enroll in
all four courses to receive the specialization certificate, the courses can be completed in any order.

Course Rules for Certificate Learners

The course rules are simple.

 Work hard!
 Have fun!
 Never hesitate to ask a question!

Course Content

The four lessons of the course are:

1. Healthcare Organizations and the Health System (Assessment: Quiz)

2. Healthcare Administration and Management (Assessment: Quiz)
3. Governance (Assessment: Quiz)
4. Design a Governance Structure for a Healthcare Organization(Assessment: Project Poster)

For the poster project, you will need PowerPoint software or its equivalent. There are many software
options other than PowerPoint. Some are available at no cost such as Impress which is part of
LibreOffice.

The topics within the Lessons are listed below:

LESSON ONE: HEALTHCARE ORGANIZATIONS AND THE HEALTH SYSTEM

Learning Objectives
[INFO] [FUN] Welcome to the Course!

Reading: [FUN] Welcome and Find Your Seat

Reading: [INFO] Welcome and Course Overview
Discussion Prompt: [FUN] Feedback - Course as a Whole
[FUN] Video: History of Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH)
Discussion Prompt: [FUN] What would you like to learn in this course?

[INFO] [FUN] Lesson One Content and Discussion

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Reading: [INFO] Welcome and Lesson One Overview

Discussion Prompt: [FUN] Feedback - Lesson One
Reading: [INFO] Topic 1. "Health Care" versus "Healthcare"
Reading: [INFO] Topic 2. Healthcare Organization and Health System
[FUN] Video - Topic 2: U.S. Public Health Service (USPHS) Overview
Reading: [INFO] Topic 3. Healthcare Organization Definitions
[FUN] Video - Topic 3: LBJ 1965 Medicare Bill-Signing Ceremony
Reading: [INFO] Topic 4. Healthcare Organization Accreditation
[FUN] Video - Topic 4: E.A. Codman, An MGH Legend
Reading: Topic 5: [INFO] Healthcare Organization Characteristics
[FUN] Video - Topic 5: Value-Based Purchasing
Discussion Prompt: [FUN] Healthcare Organization Quality Measures

[CERT] [PREP] Lesson One Quiz and "Create Your Own Healthcare Organization"

Quiz: [CERT] Lesson One Quiz

Practice Peer-graded Assignment: [PREP] Lesson One Create Your Own Healthcare Organization

[FUN] Lesson One Trivia Question and Virtual Field Trip

Reading: [FUN] Lesson One Trivia Question

Reading: [FUN] Lesson One Trivia Question Answer
Reading: [FUN] Lesson One Virtual Field Trip
[FUN] Video - Lesson One Virtual Field Trip

LESSON TWO: HEALTHCARE ADMINISTRATION AND MANAGEMENT

Learning Objectives
[INFO] [FUN] Lesson Two Content and Discussion

Reading: [INFO] Welcome and Lesson Two Overview

Discussion Prompt: [FUN] Feedback - Lesson Two
Reading: [INFO] Topic 1. Healthcare Administration versus Healthcare Management
[FUN] Video - Topic 1: Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) Administrative Fellowship Overview
Reading: [INFO] Topic 2. Healthcare Administrator Skills and Knowledge
[FUN] Video - Topic 2: American College of Healthcare Executives (ACHE) Overview
Reading: [INFO] Topic 3. Evidence-Based Healthcare Administration Practice
[FUN] Video - Topic 3. What Are Systematic Reviews?
Reading: [INFO] Topic 4. Healthcare Administration Frameworks
[FUN] Video - Topic 4. An Introduction to Lean Thinking
Reading: [INFO] Topic 5. Healthcare Administration Professional Associations
[FUN] Video - Topic 5. The Perelman School of Medicine: First
Discussion Prompt: [FUN] Healthcare Organization Silos

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[CERT] [PREP] Lesson Two Quiz and "Create Your Own Healthcare Organization"

Quiz: [CERT] Lesson Two Quiz

Practice Peer-graded Assignment: [PREP] Lesson Two Create Your Own Healthcare Organization
Practice Peer-graded Assignment: [PREP] Copy of Lesson One Create Your Own Healthcare
Organization

[FUN] Lesson Two Trivia Question and Virtual Field Trip

Reading: [FUN] Lesson Two Trivia Question

Reading: [FUN] Lesson Two Trivia Question Answer
Reading: [FUN] Lesson Two Virtual Field Trip
[FUN] Video - Lesson Two Virtual Field Trip

LESSON THREE: GOVERNANCE

Learning Objectives
[INFO] [FUN] Lesson Three Content and Discussion

Reading: [INFO] Welcome and Lesson Three Overview

Discussion Prompt: [FUN] Feedback - Lesson Three
Reading: [INFO] Topic 1. Governance and Theory
[FUN] Video - Topic 1. Cool Things at the National Archives
Reading: [INFO] Topic 2. Governance and Business Structure
[FUN] Video - Topic 2. Treasury Building Restoration
Reading: [INFO] Topic 3. Governance and Tax Status
[FUN] Video - Topic 3. Therapy Dogs at Walter Reed
Reading: [INFO] Topic 4. Governance and Mission, Vision, and Bylaws
[FUN] Video - Topic 4. Olmsted's Plan for the U.S. Capitol
Reading: [INFO] Topic 5. Governance and a Board of Directors
[FUN] Video - Topic 5. The Board’s Role in Value Creation
Discussion Prompt: [FUN] For-Profit or Non-Profit Healthcare Organizations

[CERT] [PREP] Lesson Three Quiz and "Create Your Own Healthcare Organization"

Quiz: [CERT] Lesson Three Quiz

Practice Peer-graded Assignment: [PREP] Lesson Three Create Your Own Healthcare Organization
Practice Peer-graded Assignment: [PREP] Copy of Lesson Two Create Your Own Healthcare
Organization
Practice Peer-graded Assignment: [PREP] Copy of Lesson One Create Your Own Healthcare
Organization

[FUN] Lesson Three Trivia Question and Virtual Field Trip

Reading: [FUN] Lesson Three Trivia Question

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Reading: [FUN] Lesson Three Trivia Question Answer

Reading: [FUN] Lesson Three Virtual Field Trip
[FUN] Video - Lesson Three Virtual Field Trip

LESSON FOUR: DESIGN A GOVERNANCE STRUCTURE FOR A HEALTHCARE ORGANIZATION

Learning Objectives
[INFO] [FUN] Lesson Four Content and Discussion

Reading: [INFO] Welcome and Lesson Four Overview

Discussion Prompt: [FUN] Feedback - Lesson Four
Reading: [INFO] Topic 1. Synthesize Course Content
[FUN] Video - Topic 1. This is LibreOffice
Reading: [INFO] Topic 2. Generate An Effective Electronic Poster
[FUN] Video - Topic 2. TechTime: Designing Conference Posters in PowerPoint
Reading: [INFO] Topic 3. Judge the Quality of a Poster
[FUN] Video - Topic 3. The Perfect Elevator Pitch

[CERT] [FUN] Lesson Four Self-Evaluations and Peer Review

Quiz: [CERT] Synthesize Course Content Self-Evaluation

Quiz: [CERT] Generate an Effective Electronic File Poster Self-Evaluation
Peer-graded Assignment: [CERT] Poster Submission and Evaluation
Review Your Peers: [CERT] Poster Submission and Evaluation
Discussion Prompt: [FUN] Poster Generation and Judging

[FUN] Lesson Four Trivia Question and Virtual Field Trip

Reading: [FUN] Lesson Four Trivia Question

Reading: [FUN] Lesson Four Trivia Question Answer
Reading: [FUN] Lesson Four Virtual Field Trip
[FUN] Video - Lesson Four Virtual Field Trip

[INFO] [FUN] Wrapping Up the Course

Reading: [INFO] Thank You For Participating in This Course

[FUN] Video - Highline Trail, Glacier National Park, Montana
Discussion Prompt: [FUN] Did you learn what you wanted to learn?
Discussion Prompt: [FUN] Another Opportunity for Feedback - Course as a Whole

Appendix A: Lesson One Create Your Own Healthcare Organization

Appendix B: Lesson Two Create Your Own Healthcare Organization
Appendix C: Lesson Three Create Your Own Healthcare Organization
Appendix D: Coursera_PD_HealthcareOrganization.pdf

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