Hospital and Health System

WSSU to Offer New Master’s Degree in Healthcare Administration

Beginning with the 2008 fall semester, Winston-Salem State University (WSSU) in North Carolina will offer a new Master’s program for a degree in Healthcare Administration (MHA). The University of North Carolina (UNC) Board of Governors approved the establishment of the program. It will be offered through the WSSU School of Business and Economics.

“This new 45-credit hour program will address the areas of health administration, health services management, health planning and evaluation, health policy and other related activities, all [areas in] which there is high job demand,” said Dr. Suresh Gopalan, WSSU School of Business and Economics assistant dean of graduate programs.

The medical and allied health industries make up more than 12 percent of the workforce in Forsyth County, where the university is located. The medical industry is the largest growth industry in the Winston-Salem area, and upper-level healthcare jobs are expected to increase more than 16 percent in the next five years. Additionally, WSSU had a strong demand for a MHA degree, indicated by a recent need-assessment survey of regional healthcare and allied healthcare organizations.

The program is intended to prepare management professionals for various positions in hospitals, outpatient clinics, public health, non-profit associations, long-term care facilities, pharmaceutical companies, medical equipment manufacturers, health insurance and temporary health services.

The program shed light on the lack of minorities in senior healthcare management. Additionally, WSSU is working to be the first historically black college or university in the nation to offer programs accredited by the Commission on Accreditation Healthcare Management Education (CAHME).

Source: Winston-Salem State University, October 9, 2007

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