Online Microcredential in Healthcare & Medicine

Introduction to Management and Leadership in Health Services

Develop your understanding of management and leadership theory to meet the demands of a career in health services management.

712 enrolments

Created by

The University of GlasgowThe University of Glasgow

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Get professional healthcare management training from a leading UK medical school

The complex nature of health services makes managing competing demands with limited resources extremely challenging for health professionals.

A number of Scottish Government reports have identified a need for health and social care staff to improve their leadership and management skills in order to provide safe, high-quality care.

On this microcredential, you’ll develop your understanding of the theories of management and leadership, and grow your adaptability, creativity, innovation, and analytical skills.

You’ll learn how to ensure collective leadership across staff grades, build effective multidisciplinary teams, and implement efficient ways of promoting the health and wellbeing of communities.

Engaging with health economics, equity, and clinical governance, you’ll evaluate the organisation and delivery of healthcare services and the principles underlying health service policy.

You’ll also critically assess the role of management and leadership in health services, and analyse the range of human and system failures that cause health organisations to underperform in crisis.

This microcredential meets the standards set by the Common Microcredential Framework.

What skills will you learn?

  • Problem solving
  • Analytical skills
  • Planning
  • Goal setting
  • Information gathering
  • Practice development
  • Resilience
  • Adaptability
  • Leadership theory

What you will achieve

By the end of the microcredential, you’ll be able to...

  • Assess the role of management and leadership in health services
  • Evaluate the organisation and delivery of health care services, including inter-organisational issues
  • Assess the principles underlying the development of health services and health service policy
  • Evaluate and apply the principles of quality assurance, clinical governance, and risk management in health services
  • Assess health intelligence data used in health service quality and improvement activities

Are you eligible for this microcredential?

In order to join this microcredential you should hold both:

  • a relevant undergraduate degree at least at 2.2 honours level or equivalent
  • a minimum of six months of work experience in a healthcare environment.

Exceptionally, you may also join if you hold a relevant professional qualification and at least two years experience in the professional practice of health service management.

For Scottish-Domiciled Learners, fully-funded places are available to join this course for free, awarded on a first-come-first-served basis. More information.

Is this microcredential right for you?

This course is designed for health and social care professionals who’d like to pursue or enhance their career in health service management at all levels, from large hospitals to community services.

As well as being led by one of the UK’s top three medical schools, the course includes contributions from senior NHS staff working in management and policy who understand how to motivate teams and transform services.

Although the focus will largely be on care practice in Scotland, international examples of good practice will be included to critically analyse alternative approaches to healthcare.

Syllabus

What happens before, during, and after your microcredential

  • Before learning

    You’ll be enrolled directly with the University of Glasgow, allowing you access student services and support including the library.

  • Course 1

    From 26 Apr 2021

    Understanding the Context of Health Care Management

    In Part 1 students will identify the challenges and the complexity of health services and critique how they are managed.

    5 weeks

    10 hours per week

    • Week 1

      Introduction and Navigating the healthcare terrain
      • Welcome
      • Accessing Glasgow University Resources
      • Course Information
      • Navigating the healthcare terrain
    • Week 2

      The nature of healthcare management
      • Introduction to Week 2
      • Strategy and Healthcare Management
      • Compassion in healthcare management and leadership
      • A ‘mixed economy’ of care
      • Summary of Week 2
    • Week 3

      Human elements of healthcare management
      • Introduction to Week 3
      • Managers and Management
      • Leaders and Leadership
      • Comparing Management and Leadership
      • Summary of Week 3
    • Week 4

      Governance and accountability
      • Introduction to Week 4
      • The role of governance in healthcare organisations
      • Exploring organisational culture
      • Governance and accountability from the perspective of a CEO
    • Week 5

      Assessment 1
      • Assessment 1: Bulletin
      • A Note on Data
  • Course 2

    From 31 May 2021

    Doing Health Service Management Differently

    Part 2 encourages sharing of ideas to stimulate innovation in the management of health services in a familiar environment.

    5 weeks

    10 hours per week

    • Week 1

      Introduction to systems approaches
      • Introduction to Week 6
      • Working across boundaries
      • Systems Thinking in Healthcare
      • Alternative Approaches to Health and Social Care Integration
      • Conclusion
    • Week 2

      Understanding Policymaking
      • Introduction to Week
      • Making Policy
      • 'Wicked Problems': Drug-related deaths in Scotland
      • Working with 'Wicked Problems' from a Policy Perspective
    • Week 3

      Leading change
      • Introduction to Week 8
      • Managing a Change Process
      • Examples: Change at national and local levels
      • Seizing the Opportunity: Unplanned Changes
    • Week 4

      Health Economics and Economic Evaluations
      • Introduction to Week 9
      • Principles of healthcare economics
      • Decision Making on Allocated Healthcare Resources
      • Preparing an Economic Evaluation for Peer Review
      • Summary of the course and making future career plans
    • Week 5

      Assessment
      • Assignment 2
  • After learning

    Once you have successfully completed the microcredential, you’ll receive 10 academic credits at Postgraduate level from the University of Glasgow which can be used towards your MSc in Health Service Management.

What you will receive

10 UK credits at Postgraduate level from The University of Glasgow

These credits can be used towards the University of Glasgow’s MSc in Health Service Management.

Find out how credits work and where you can use them in our FAQs.

What is a microcredential?

Microcredentials are designed to upskill you for work in rapidly-growing industries, without the time and cost commitment of a full degree. Your microcredential can stand alone as an independent credential, and some also offer academic credit to use towards a degree.

Learn online with expert instructors

Complete online courses led by experts over multiple weeks with a dedicated group of professionals.

Complete project-based assessments

Test your understanding with online tutor-marked assessments and exercises.

Earn a professional credential

Finish your learning and pass your assessments to gain an accredited credential.

Advance further in your career

Use your microcredential as evidence of your specialised skills and progress further in your industry.

Career-focused learning by The University of Glasgow

Founded in 1451, the University of Glasgow is the fourth oldest university in the English-speaking world. It is a member of the prestigious Russell Group of leading UK research universities.

  • Established

    1451
  • Location

    Glasgow, Scotland, UK
  • World ranking

    Top 70Source: QS World University Rankings 2020

Delivered by experts

After a number of years practising as a nurse in the UK, Sue worked in The Gambia, Rwanda, Sudan and Uganda for international development NGOs. She works as a lecturer with the University of Glasgow.

I'm a lecturer working in the College of Medicine, Veterinary & Life Sciences at the University of Glasgow. I'm a sociologist interested in drug use, health, families, & policy.

Twitter: @DrSGreenwood

I’m your teaching assistant and will be moderating the online discussion boards. I am completing a PhD from the Adam Smith Business School.

Learning on FutureLearn

Your learning, your rules

  • Courses are split into weeks, activities, and steps to help you keep track of your learning
  • Learn through a mix of bite-sized videos, long- and short-form articles, audio, and practical activities
  • Stay motivated by using the Progress page to keep track of your step completion and assessment scores

Join a global classroom

  • Experience the power of social learning, and get inspired by an international network of learners
  • Share ideas with your peers and course educators on every step of the course
  • Join the conversation by reading, @ing, liking, bookmarking, and replying to comments from others

Map your progress

  • As you work through the course, use notifications and the Progress page to guide your learning
  • Whenever you’re ready, mark each step as complete, you’re in control
  • Complete 90% of course steps and all of the assessments to earn your certificate

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When would you like to start?

Enrolment for this microcredential is closed. We aim to run our microcredentials every few months. Register to find out more about this microcredential and future start dates.

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    FAQ

    We can accept payments made by card (Visa, Mastercard and American Express) or PayPal via our online system.

    You will have 14 days from the day the course starts to apply for a refund. If this Microcredential has any non-refundable costs they will be stated in the ‘Overview’ section above. You can find more information in our cancellation and refund policy.

    Microcredentials are designed to fit around your life and timezone.

    There may be live events as part of your studies, but these will be recorded and can be watched afterwards if you aren’t online for the live broadcast.

    No, microcredentials are designed to be taken anywhere in the world. You won’t need the right to study in the country where the university offering the microcredential is based.

    These credits can be used towards the University of Glasgow’s MSc in Health Service Management.

    Want to know more? Read the microcredential FAQs, or contact us.