Master of Health Administration (MHA)
CA⁺HME Accredited  

Vision
To inspire students to become tomorrow’s healthcare leaders through the integration of science, practice, and lifelong learning.

Values 

• Accountability
• Collaboration
• Diversity
• Excellence
• Integrity
• Leadership
• Professionalism

Guided by University, Faculty and School core values, our mission is to:

• Prepare qualified and motivated individuals as administrators at entry and mid-level positions in healthcare organizations through knowledge, skills, and values acquired using a competency-based model of learning.
• Conduct research and scholarship that enrich the body of knowledge in healthcare.
• Collaborate with health organizations, agencies, volunteer groups, and community at large to create an environment to foster innovative ways to improve healthcare delivery, and/or management that will benefit the well-being of the population.
  

Training in Health Administration

Why Do I Need Advanced Training in Healthcare Administration?

Healthcare is essential, expensive, and complex, and highly skilled leaders are essential to managing such an important human service. The educational requirements have changed because the Canadian healthcare system has changed. In 1982 the national healthcare invoice was $58 billion. Today’s national healthcare invoice, adjusted for inflation, is a staggering $150 billion, and steadily increasing. Consider the following. In just 10 years, there will be more Canadian seniors (> 65 years) than children (< 15 years).  Technology will be further embedded in healthcare delivery and increasingly expensive. Pharmaceutical costs are now the second highest healthcare expenditure, surpassing physician costs several years ago and the expenditures continue to rise.  Demand for and provision of private healthcare service will substantially increase, as will legal challenges to the Canada Health Act to ensure prompt access to a full range of health services over the next two decades.

These represent serious challenges, challenges that will require systemic change, employing strategic innovation to ensure increased efficacy, efficiency, and accountability. For the well-trained health administrator, the challenges will be seen as exceptional, career-defining opportunities to help shape the future of the Canadian health system. If you value one of the world’s most respected health systems, and wish to make it even better, we welcome the opportunity to work with you, and make you the outstanding leader you will become. 

The profession of Health Administration is recognized as essential to well-run health systems. The profession was formally recognized well over a half a century ago. From the first CA⁺HME™ Accredited Graduate Program founded in 1932 until now, the Masters degree is recognized as the essential first step toward managerial and executive career paths in most health organizations. 

Does It Matter If I Graduate with a CA⁺HME Accredited Masters of Health Administration?

Yes.  The Dalhousie School of Health Administration offers the MHA, which has met the rigorous criteria for accreditation through the Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Management Education [CA⁺HME]. The prestigious CA⁺HME Accreditation is recognized throughout North America. The Dalhousie School of Health Administration is one of only three programs with the prestigious CA⁺HME Accreditation. For programs awarded CA⁺HME™ Accredited Programs to maintain accreditation, the programs must submit to scheduled internal reviews, followed by rigorous external reviews by an outside panel of experts to assure the public that the program is constantly seeking to improve, and upholding the highest standards of professional training. Accreditation is commonly evaluated every 5 years through formal external review [site visit, document review] by American and Canadian Health Administration experts.

Graduates from CA⁺HME Accredited Masters Program are assured an outstanding level of training.  In order for a graduate program in healthcare management to become accredited it must submit to a rigorous examination of its purpose, the curriculum, the student experience and the success of the graduates in the competitive job market.

What is the Difference in Health Administration Secured From a MHA Degree Versus a MBA Degree in Healthcare?

There are a several ways to answer this question. One way is to conceptualize the degrees as providing generic versus specialized graduate training.

The MBA degree is variously named as it relates to the health field (e.g., “MBA Healthcare”; MBA Health Leadership” or simply ‘MBA” [with selected health courses]). This degree provides a generalist, graduate-level training in business, with an ‘identified area of interest’ in Healthcare. The core of the MBA curriculum typically remains the same for all MBA students, a curriculum designed to prepare its graduates with the foundations of business skills, in preparation for a wide range of businesses. Those interested in healthcare chose a series of elective courses in healthcare.

The MHA provides specialized training in the management of health systems, services and health policy.  The MHA curriculum is specifically designed to prepare its graduates with the foundations of business skills but skills entrenched in the framework of Healthcare and Health Administration throughout the curriculum, and strategically linked to the Health Administration residency.   

For further information on CA⁺HME, please click here.