Health Services Management MSc

A programme of individual study and research project in accordance with established research principles involving the completion of the following elements:

Management Research Project

To provide the opportunity to apply management knowledge, skills and research techniques developed during the programme to the identified area of management interest.

To develop students’ intellectual ability in terms of problem solving, critical analysis and conceptual thinking.

To provide students with the opportunity, and the enabling mechanisms to support their development towards independent learning.

The nature, extent and purposes of management research

Management research paradigms

Research strategies

Research designs, methods and approaches

Research quality standards: establishing validity, reliability and generalisability

Sampling and Research instrument design

Research ethics

Research Data Management: collection, organisation and analysis

Managing a dissertation research project

The aim of this module is to enable learners to:

Understand and critically evaluate the findings of management research

Design and implement a management research project using methodologies and methods appropriate to research questions and objectives

Analyse and report management research findings meeting academic and practitioner needs

• Organisational behaviour/culture, structure and design;

• The role of the manager, leadership theories, styles and approaches;

• Groups and teams in the organisation – group formation, team working;

• Individual personality, communication and motivation;

• The role of Human Resource Management in the workplace;

• Strategies for high performance working (HPW);

• Employee relations and employment dynamics;

• Performance Management and managing poor performance;

• Learning and development methodologies; 

• Theories and application of reflective practice.

This aims of this module are;

1. For students to draw upon key concepts of leading and managing people and examine how these apply to the current and future world of work;
2. For students to explore and develop an understanding of key theories and concepts in the field of people management and development;
3. For students to be able to synthesise knowledge of people management, together with gaining awareness of wider contextual issues in order to address organisational challenges.

The module content will include:-

1. International healthcare systems and models of commissioning healthcare
2. Epidemiology and inequalities
3. Role of international organisations and policy development
4. Main health challenges – international and selected country specific
5. Models of commissioning – global approaches in detail
6. Designing new approaches to healthcare management
7. Evaluating healthcare outcomes

Health and social care professionals of the future need to be proactive in commissioning services to function strategically within dynamic professional and political contexts. This demands the development of capability, expertise and innovation in commissioning, as well as the ability to work in collaborative partnerships with multiple stakeholders, in local, national and international contexts.  

 This inter-professional module aims to:

1. Promote critical understanding of the underpinning knowledge, statutory duties of co-operation, assessment and care planning processes essential to commissioning services and driving health and social care reform, both nationally and internationally.
2. Enable students to use knowledge and skills to effect expert and imaginative commissioning plans and service redesign applied to area of study.
3. Promote appropriate strategies for critical thinking, reflective practice and personal development.

The module content will include: 

1. Concepts of leadership and management.
2. Contemporary theories and models of leadership.
3. Understanding self and others. An Introduction to self-assessment tools and personal action planning.
4. Leading change through teamwork and leading teams
5. Project management
6. The impact of leadership and management.

The aims of the module are: 

1. To enable students to utilise leadership skills in order to lead change in service provision, delivery and personal development.
2. To promote a critical understanding of the need for effective leadership, within the health and social care setting.
3. To promote appropriate strategies for critical thinking and reflective practice.

This module content will include:

1. Introduction to financial management in health and social care contexts
2. Financial accounting, budget management and effective reporting 
3. Sources of funding and financial strategies in healthcare organisations
4. Business planning and financial decision making for the enhancement of quality of care
5. Performance management techniques, including non-financial performance indicators
6. Development of robust business cases within the health and social care sector
7. Global perspectives and international good practice in health and social care financial management 

The module aims to enable students to:

1. Understand the funding sources and financial mechanisms involved in managing health and social care organisations effectively.
2. Develop knowledge and skills in financial accounting, budget management, and reporting specifically tailored to the healthcare context and the financial responsibilities of healthcare management.
3. Comprehend and apply business planning and performance management techniques, including non-financial performance indicators and the development of robust business cases within the healthcare sector.
4. Foster an awareness of global perspectives and international good practice in relation to financial management in health and social care. 

This module will introduce students to innovation theories and process in the context of health and social care services globally. 

Indicative content will include:

• The theories and processes of innovation;
• Creativity, innovation, and idea generation;
• Catalysts and drivers for innovation in the context of health and social care;
• Understanding service users, policy and social trends as applicable to the health and social care sectors;
• Strategies to confront challenges relating to transformation and improvement of health and social care.
• Digital and emerging technologies for innovation;
• Managing innovation and leading change;
• Creating a dynamic culture that supports innovation and implementation of change;
• Social entrepreneurship in the health and social care sector;
• Appraising innovation and scaling for social impact;
• Understanding and reporting social impact for stakeholders, patients, service users, and benefactors;
• Ethical and social implications of innovation in health and social care.

The overarching aim of this module is to help students critically analyse, evaluate, and apply concepts and theories of innovation in a health and social care context.

The module aims to enable students to:

1. Evaluate the catalysts for innovation and enterprise in health and social care, including the various drivers of innovation in health and social care, such as changing patient needs, advances in technology, policy changes, and social trends.
2. Explore management challenges that arise during the innovation process, including funding, stakeholder relationships, and regulatory compliance, and evaluate strategies to overcome these challenges.
3. Examine and apply concepts on creating a culture that supports innovation and enterprise.
4. Assess the different stages of the innovation process, from idea generation and concept development to implementation and evaluation of social value.