New AGSM Short Courses to bolster careers in health leadership

UNSW Medicine, in partnership with the Australian Graduate School of Management (AGSM) @ UNSW Business School have launched a new series of online Short Courses to equip the next generation of health leaders with practical management and leadership skills.

Created by UNSW Medicine and integrating with the AGSM's virtual learning platform and infrastructure to deliver each program, the courses combine world leading expertise from AGSM and UNSW Medicine to integrate the best evidence into practice.

Enhancing leadership and management capability in the health workforce is critical in the context of the global health landscape, which is undergoing rapid change due to globalisation, emerging health threats, escalating rates of chronic diseases, and an ageing population.

The current COVID-19 pandemic and the recent bushfire emergency in Australia illustrate the importance of effective, adaptive leadership. More than ever before health professionals and health systems need to be agile to handle multiple and complex health issues. The need for the right leadership skillsets will help drive change in our health systems and impact patient outcomes in Australia for the better.

"The School of Public Health and Community Medicine is pleased to be the first to launch these short new courses as part of a new partnership with AGSM. We aim to cultivate and develop the skills and knowledge that future healthcare professionals require to be effective leaders for their organisations," said Professor Rebecca Ivers, Head of School of Public Health and Community Medicine.

"Completing one or more of these courses will enable participants to develop a range of leadership and health systems management skills and knowledge essential for progressing value-based healthcare and transformational change," she said.  

These short courses are tailored to equip those already working in healthcare who want to enhance their leadership skills from those in clinical front-line roles to senior leadership roles. These courses are grouped into three series, with five courses per series:

• Series one, 'From clinician to healthcare leaders', supports those transitioning into leadership and management roles in healthcare.
• Series two, 'Moving towards value-based health care', upskills those leading or embarking on change management in value-based healthcare project.
• Series three, 'General short courses for the future of work in health care', offers explores current health system leadership issues, such as how to employ emotional intelligence to enhance workplace experiences and outcomes, and how to navigate organisational dynamics to lead teams and services.

Students have the option to study just one course as a stand-alone course or they can complete all five courses within a series. They can also choose to select one or more courses from different series to create a flexible bespoke learning pathway to suite their needs.

Magnus Gittins, Director AGSM Executive Education, said "these courses are about going beyond theory to provide real-world insights into current healthcare needs and challenges."

"The interactive online format provides virtual coaching and webinars that will bring together students and industry leaders, such as chief executive officers of local health districts and state health services, to deliver an active and relevant learning experience," Gittins said.

If you are a professional, manager or leader in a public and private health organisation and you aspire to innovate, transform and lead health services towards better patient outcomes.  Our new Short Courses can be the catalyst to accelerate your career to the next step.

All Short Courses feature:

• Interactive webinars
• Critical reflections on evidence-based approaches
• Practical exercises with engaging discussions during virtual workshops
• Live presenters for case studies
• Meeting and networking with inspirational leaders in their field
• Developing a plan to convert theory to action

Each Short Course is worth three credit points towards an Executive Certificate in Health. To achieve this certificate, you will need to obtain 15 credit points by completing 5 courses.

This Executive Certificate in Health can also be used as recognition of prior learning and up to six Units of Credit towards a Postgraduate Course in Medicine, if the participates wish to continue studying.

UNSW Medicine Short Courses commence from July 2020 and enrolments are open now.

To register or find out more, click here.

To learn more about AGSM Short Courses, click here.