MHA/MBA Competencies and Curriculum

As a dual-accredited program in CAHME and AACSB, the Army-Baylor Program uses a competency model to define the skills and knowledge expected from our graduates. With 100% placement in the federal health system, most graduates will receive an entry- to mid-level management position. For this reason, incorporation of elements from the Joint Medical Executive Skills Program (JMESP) Core Curriculum and the American College of Healthcare Executives' Competency Assessment Tool, our graduate degree program in healthcare administration presents a robust competency model designed to empower aspiring healthcare leaders with the essential skills and knowledge required for success in today's dynamic healthcare landscape.

Our competency model was reviewed and updated in August 2024 by the program faculty, alumni, and its practitioner-based Advisory Board. The foundation rooted in the collaborative efforts of the JMESP and guided by the comprehensive and regularly updated competencies of the American College of Healthcare Executives, our program places a strong emphasis on developing executive skills tailored to meet the demands of healthcare executives, administrators, and managers. Since its inception in 1996, the JMESP has set a high standard for identifying and cultivating the behaviors and competencies expected of accomplished military medical treatment facility leaders, while the American College of Healthcare Executives' tool continues to evolve in response to the ever-changing challenges and opportunities faced by healthcare leaders across diverse management domains.

The Army-Baylor program prepares early and mid-career Military Officers, Department of Defense (DoD), and Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) civilians to play pivotal roles in healthcare administration in the 21st century. Our competencies are organized in their support of six domains:

Military Health
Leadership and Professionalism
Knowledge of the Healthcare Environment
Communication and Relationship Management
Health Law, Policy, and Ethics
Business and Analytical Skills

Students completing our MHA program will be assessed on their ability to demonstrate the 19 competencies on a competency proficiency scale from 0 to 5. While students in the MHA/MBA track will be assessed on their ability to demonstrate 20 competencies on a competency proficiency scale from 0 to 5.

Our proficiency scale is adapted from the National Institutes of Health includes:

0 – None (No Awareness)
1 – Fundamental Awareness (Basic Knowledge)
2 – Novice (Limited Experience)
3 – Intermediate (Practical Application)
4 – Advanced (Applied Theory)
5 – Expert (Recognized Authority)

Competency Model

Military Health Domain

National Military Strategy & Military Medical Mission Competency (3) - The ability to understand Medical Doctrine, Military Mission, and Readiness of the Medical Forces.
Emergency Management and Contingency Operations Competency (3) - The ability to sustain preparations for and delivery of medical services and the recovery from unanticipated events (e.g., natural disasters, terrorism, or global military operation).

Leadership and Professionalism Domain

Leadership Skills and Behaviors Competency (3) – The ability to influence others to accomplish the mission. It requires a complex set of skills and values to work with and through others.
Personal & Professional Accountability Competency (3) – The ability take responsibility for actions and results, both positive and negative and being responsible for the outcome of a task, whether it is a success or failure.
Organizational Climate and Culture Competency (3) – The ability to share behavioral expectations and norms in a work environment and the staff perceptions of the impact of the work environment on the individual.

Health Policy, Law, and Ethics Domain

Health Law and Health Policy Competency (3) – The ability to understand and utilize all laws that specify requirements in areas such as public health, patient consent, patient rights, and environmental standards, and regulations to include all Federal, state, and local policy that affect medical operations, decisions, plans, and actions that are undertaken to achieve specific healthcare goals within a society.
Research and Investigation Competency (3) – The ability to comprehend the capability of research and investigation to improve health status and standards of care.
Ethics Competency (3) – The ability to comprehend processes, structures, and social constructs by which the rightness or wrongness of actions is assessed and includes Personal, Professional, and Organizational ethics.

Knowledge of the Healthcare Domain

Healthcare Systems and Organizations (3) – The ability to grasp the organization of people, institutions, and resources that deliver healthcare services to meet the health needs of target populations.
Healthcare Personnel and Resource Management Competency (3) - The ability to see the potential in Human Resource Management, Labor-Management Relations, Materiel Management, and Facilities Management.
Quality Improvement, Patient Safety, and High Reliability Organization Competency (3) – The ability to implement the continuous and systematic efforts to enhance the quality of patient care, outcomes, and the overall healthcare system, the measures implemented by healthcare providers to prevent harm or injury to patients during their medical care, and prioritizing a strong safety culture, open communication, and resilient processes to minimize errors in patient care.
Public, Population, and Community Health Competency (3) – The ability to apply the science and practice of protecting and improving the health of communities through education, promotion of healthy lifestyle, and disease prevention efforts, the health outcomes of a group of individuals, and the health status and well-being of individuals within a specific geographic area or community.

Business and Analytical Skills Domain

Financial Management Competency (3) – The ability to comprehend operating in a managed care environment, maintaining financial records, controlling financial activities, identifying deviations from planned performance, managing the acquisition and contracting processes, and strategic resourcing.
Strategic Planning Competency (3) – The ability to understand the Governance and Organizational Design of Healthcare. The ability to be forward looking, proactive processes for assessing the total environment, establishing direction, and developing execution strategies consistent with organizational goals and in support of mission requirements.
Data Driven Decision Making Competency (3) – The ability to apply Quantitative Methods and the process of analyzing, prioritizing, evaluating, selecting courses of action and alternatives, and implementing a decision relevant to the situation.
Information Management Competency (3) – The ability to implement the process of managing information technology (IT) resources to accomplish agency missions and to improve agency performance. This includes information and related resources such as personnel, equipment, funds, IT, and other enabling technology.
**(MHA/MBA Only) Knowledge of Global Business Environment (3) – The ability to analyze the impact of global economic factors, including currency exchange rates, inflation, trade policies, and economic development indicators, on international business operations and decision-making. The ability to conduct competitive analyses of various global markets, identifying key players, market trends, and potential opportunities for business growth or expansion.

Communication and Relationship Management Domain

Interpersonal Communication Competency (3) – The ability to utilize effective communication which occurs when the receiver understands the sender’s intended message.
Strategic Communication Competency (3) – The ability to apply the development, integration and evaluation of key themes and messages utilizing effective communications tactics to deliver a clearly defined message using multiple means to targeted audiences.
Relationship, Change, and Conflict Management Competency (3) – The ability to effectively employ Relationship Management, Change Management, and Conflict Management. to maintain and enhance its interactions with stakeholders, customers, clients, partners, and other parties involved in its operations.

For the MHA and ECL MHA degrees, the target level competency attainment for each competency at the end of the program is 3 – Intermediate (Practical Application). **For the MHA/MBA and ECL MHA/MBA degrees, the target level competency attainment for each competency is also 3 – Practical Application; however, this track includes the Knowledge of Global Business Environment competency which has a target level competency attainment of 3 – Practical Application.

Learning and Competency Assessment

Higher-level teaching and learning methods examples used during the didactic year include:

In-class presentations
Cases
Team activities
Simulations
Reflective learning
Strategic/consulting projects

Lower-level teaching and learning method examples include:

Readings
Lectures with media/without media
Guest speakers

The Army-Baylor Program uses a variety of assessment methods that reflect academic rigor.

Examples of higher-level assessments during the didactic year include:

Synthesis, analysis-based exams
Case review and feedback
Team assessments
Class participation
Strategic consulting projects
Journals
Reflective Modeling

Examples of lower-level assessments during the didactic year include:

Summary papers/reports
Pre/post knowledge or skills testing

An Army-Baylor student will be assessed using higher-level assessment methods about 75% of the time during the didactic year. During the residency year, an Army-Baylor resident will be assessed using higher-level assessments.

Throughout the didactic year, students attend regular sessions with executive leadership to gain further exposure to the elements within the competency model and executive healthcare leadership.

All students monitor their growth and development (with target achievement levels) according to these competencies, through a series of self- and faculty-assessments, and create a learning portfolio to guide them towards their career goals. Furthermore, the culmination of the didactic year is an oral board examination which allows students to receive feedback from faculty and healthcare executives on competency attainment. Additionally, students are objectively assessed on retained knowledge on curriculum learning objectives at the program level through the Peregrine Healthcare Administration Assessment tool. Lastly, students continue to develop competencies throughout their residency experience and receive competency attainment feedback from their respective preceptors. Students implement their learning portfolio during orientation week with their initial Peregrine exam scores and continue throughout the program to collect competency attainment, reflect on learning, strengths, and weaknesses and document professional goals.

Competency Model Continuous Improvement

In 2024, the Army-Baylor faculty developed this competency model to better capture program-level competencies related to the MHA, dual MHA/MBA degree program, and residency year. Army-Baylor students are offered the unique opportunity to attend residency at a Military Treatment Facility (MTF), VA hospital, or a reputable civilian health care partner such as Mayo, Cleveland Clinic, Methodist, and so forth.

Understanding these program opportunities, the new Army-Baylor Program competency model accounts for the common need across any major federal or civilian health system for our graduates to be competent in knowledge in health systems management, business administration, and decision-making.

Last Updated: 20240912