Three credits are required as electives, and may be recognized from other approved institutions and organizations allowing for complete customization according to your career goals. Electives can include evidence-based research in health management, global population health, health care supply chain management, executive coaching and mentoring, disaster planning, pandemic and crisis management, corporate social responsibility in health care and more. For more information on electives, please contact the EMBA Office.

Comparative Analysis of International Healthcare Systems

This course provided a comparative analysis of the policy framework and health delivery system in six developed countries: United Kingdom, Sweden, Australia, New Zealand, Netherlands and Canada.  Six modules are covered:

• Organization, Governance, and Financing
• Economics, Public/Private Models and System Performance
• Health Human Resources and Demand/Utilization Management
• Primary Health Care
• Pharmaceutical Policy
• Public Health Strategies

Internet Marketing Communications in Health Care

The purpose of this course is to develop the skills necessary to manage and implement successful marketing communications programs.  In health care we will cover marcoms that follow conventional  “for profit” schema, i.e. “go” behaviours, and specific programs targeted at preventing or changing “anti-social” behaviour, i.e “no-go” behaviours

Negotiating for Success

Managers negotiate everyday. They negotiate about contracts, leases, purchases, salaries and other material issues as well as about less tangible issues like expectations, ideas, and responsibilities. Managers need analytical skills to discover superior solutions to organizational challenges, but they need negotiation skills to get others to accept and implement these solutions. Unfortunately, many managers negotiate poorly. They compromise, give in, or force others to give in when creative problem solving could lead to a deal that would be better for everyone involved. The goal of this course is to help you develop the negotiation skills needed to meet the challenges faced by managers.

Human Resources and Labour Relations in Health Care

The goal of this module is to provide Health care EMBA students with a solid grounding in the key elements of human resource management and labour relations as practised in the British Columbia health care sector. The module will apply an integrative approach encompassing the perspectives of human resource management, employment law and labour relations as they affect the major policies and processes involved in managing the health care workforce. Through a combination of lectures, discussions, video presentations and case studies, students will be encouraged to develop an appreciation of the importance of effective workforce management to organizational effectiveness and the delivery of high quality, cost-effective health care. The module will also seek to enable managers to make the most effective use of human resources and labour relations consultants within the health care system. The module will be structured around the major aspects of forming, developing, compensating and directing the workforce. An overview of the structure of the key agents in health care human resource management and labour relations will be provided. The varying roles of managers at different levels in the health care system will be discussed, with an emphasis on the delivery or operational level of the system. Throughout the module, the link between employee motivation and commitment and the achievement of overall strategic goals will be reinforced.

Management Consulting

Discuss what Management Consulting is (including types of mandates, focus of key firms, level of the organization typically engaged), and discuss the overall consulting process.  Here, we would discuss consulting approaches across implementation/program management and more strategic studies, as the process would differ across each. Case examples focused on working as a consultant. The best way to learn is to practice!  Focus would be on various types of consulting engagements, providing real case examples of how a group would work through a project.  Ideally, we would have the group split into teams and work through simulated engagements (or parts of engagements, which may be more realistic given time constraints).  The goal would be to develop real consulting skills in terms of analytics, client communication, and team management.

Given that best practices on working with consultants will be a key takeaway for the group we discussed on our last call, we would focus on how to work with consultants to drive results on a day-to-day basis.  This work could include case studies, or could be more of a best practices and examples-based discussion on how to do this most effectively.  Discussion would focus on how best to structure check-ins with an external consulting group, how to manage the time requirements placed on internal staff, and how to set and assess the goals of a particular study.

Change Management

This course looks at organizational change from a human and process perspective. You will understand how change acts upon people, and what leadership behaviours are needed to manage the upheaval. You will also learn key skills for overcoming resistance to change, for supporting yourself and others in times of uncertainty, and for facilitating the transition process. Furthermore, we will investigate several change approaches, methods offered by theorists and practitioners regarding how to move an organization from one state to a [presumably] more desirable one.  And finally, of course, you will apply your academic knowledge to case analyses, large and small group discussions, and activities.  This program encourages you to benefit in a scholarly, yet professionally practical way.

Change is one of the most significant Leadership challenges you will face.  It is a source of uncertainty and frustration for those at all levels: strategic, team, and – most painfully – the individual. While approaches for dealing with change may vary over time, the ways people react to it remain remarkably constant. It is this human element that represents the most considerable complication to successful transformation. When people are unable to cope, even the most well-planned effort can fail—potentially at an enormous cost to the organization (and to people’s well-being).

Leadership Two

These two modules build upon the leadership concepts covered in the CORE. Their themes focus on leading others and leading yourself. The first module will introduce students to multiple frameworks and skills. The second module builds on the first, and will focus on the application of the concepts to a challenge or set of challenges facing leaders in health care.