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HQS

Healthcare Quality & Safety

At a Glance

  • College

    College of Population Health, Online Programs

  • Degree

    Master of Science, Certificate

  • Format

    Online

  • Duration

    2 Years

Program

Mary Reich Cooper, MD, JD
Program Director

Program

Celeste Chamberlain, PhD, MS, BSN, CPHQ
Associate Program Director, Curriculum

Program

Ellen L. Guarnieri, RN, MHSA, CPHQ, FACHE
Associate Program Director, External Programs

Program

Andrew Kopolow, MPA, MSW, CPHQ, CLSSMBB, FNAHQ
Assistant Program Director, Curriculum

Program

Francis Colangelo, MD, MS, FACP
Assistant Program Director, External Programs

Contact Admissions

Visit Jefferson
Information Sessions

Curriculum

Courses

(* refers to footnotes)

Advanced Practice Certificates (APCs)

APC in Healthcare Quality & Safety
  • HQS 500: Introduction to Healthcare Quality & Safety (*1)
  • OPX 530: Applied Leadership Strategies for Effective Change (*4)
  • HQS 504: High Reliability
APC in Healthcare Quality & Safety (QIPS Track)
  • OPX 520: Change Management
  • HQS 509: Applied Principles of Healthcare Quality
  • HQS 515: Applied Principles of Patient Safety
  • Monthly live virtual sessions & mentored project

    For more information on APC QIPS Track, please visit here.
APC in Healthcare Quality & Safety Education
  • HQS 509: Applied Principles of Healthcare Quality
  • HQS 515: Applied Principles of Patient Safety
  • HQS 516: Teaching Quality & Safety
APC in Health Systems Science
  • HQS 500: Introduction to Healthcare Quality & Safety (*1)
  • POP 500: Essentials of Population Health
  • OPX 530: Applied Leadership Strategies for Effective Change (*4)
APC in Health Systems Science Education
  • HQS 500: Introduction to Healthcare Quality & Safety (*1)
  • Elective (Program Director approval needed)
  • HQS 517: Teaching Health Systems Science

Graduate Certificate (Science Track)

  • OPX 530: Applied Leadership Strategies for Effective Change (*4)
  • HQS 500: Introduction to Healthcare Quality & Safety (*1)
  • HQS 509: Applied Principles of Healthcare Quality
  • HQS 515: Applied Principles of Patient Safety
  • HQS 504: High Reliability

Master's Degree (Science Track)

  • OPX 530: Applied Leadership Strategies for Effective Change (*4)
  • HQS 500: Introduction to Healthcare Quality & Safety (*1)
  • HQS 509: Applied Principles of Healthcare Quality
  • HQS 515: Applied Principles of Patient Safety
  • OPX 520: Change Management
  • HQS 504: High Reliability
  • HQS 512 Business Case for Quality
  • HQS 505: Advanced Tools & Methods for HQS
  • HQS 507: Advanced Applications of HQS in Clinical Settings
  • Elective (Program Director approval needed) (*2)
  • HQS 650: Capstone *

Master's Degree (Management Track)

  • OPX 530: Applied Leadership Strategies for Effective Change (*3, 4)
  • HQS 500: Introduction to Healthcare Quality & Safety (*1)
  • HQS 509: Applied Principles of Healthcare Quality
  • HQS 515: Applied Principles of Patient Safety
  • OPX 520: Change Management
  • HQS 504: High Reliability
  • HQS 512 Business Case for Quality
  • HQS 505: Advanced Tools & Methods for HQS
  • HQS 507: Advanced Applications of HQS in Clinical Settings
  • Elective (Program Director approval needed) (*3)
  • HQS 650: Capstone *

Additional Elective Options

  • HQS 508: Quality in Post Acute Care Settings
  • OPX 532: Project Management Essentials
  • OPX 540: Baldrige
  • OPX 550: Fundamentals of Six Sigma DMAIC

Footnotes

  1. Waived for members of the National Association for Healthcare Quality (NAHQ) who hold the Certified Professional in Healthcare Quality (CPHQ) credential.
  2. Waived for members of the Society of Hospital Medicine (SHM) who have completed qualifying courses in the SHM Leadership Academy (Master's only).

    Waived for those who have completed the High Reliability Academy. 
  3. Waived for members of the American Association for Physician Leadership (AAPL) who have completed the master's pre-requisites, or graduates of an accredited MBA/MHA program.
  4. Waived for members of the Pennsylvania Medical Society.

There is a maximum number of credits that can be waived or substituted. Students must claim applicable waivers at time of admission. See Student Handbook for more details.

*All Masters' tracks culminate in a Capstone which incorporates knowledge and skills gained through the master's program education. The Capstone should advance knowledge which can be applied to the student’s discipline and/or organization. 

For course descriptions, please view the Jefferson College of Population Health Course Descriptions page.

Program Outcomes

The HQS program prepares graduates to lead the transition of healthcare delivery towards high-value care by preparing them to:

Graduate Certificate
  • Apply management and leadership skills to develop policies related to measurement and improvement of HQS
  • Integrate change management theory into project management program design to improve healthcare quality and patient safety
  • Distinguish the various factors that influence risk in health care and discuss the legal principles and regulatory mechanisms that relate to it
  • Apply the foundational concepts of quality and safety measurement, improvement and analysis within the framework of collaborative team dynamics and change management
Master’s Degree (above plus)
  • Produce evidence to support healthcare policy development and change
  • Integrate quality, safety, and transformation/change management tools to promote patient safety
  • Design and implement performance improvement strategies at a system level
  • Assimilate interprofessional collaboration into an organizational strategic plan for compliance with internal and external influences on quality and safety
  • Evaluate effectiveness of various performance improvement interventions and outcomes
  • Develop systematic approaches to drive broad-impacting improvements in clinical outcomes across the healthcare continuum