Quality, Safety and Risk Management in Healthcare

Major: Quality, Safety and Risk Management in Healthcare
Degree Awarded: Master of Science (MS)
Calendar Type: Quarter
Minimum Required Credits: 46.0
Co-op Option: None
Classification of Instructional Programs (CIP) code: 51.0701
Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) code: 11-9111

About the Program

The MS in Quality, Safety, and Risk Management in Healthcare prepares students to lead organizational efforts that improve and monitor quality metrics, improve safety for both patients and staff, and manage risks in a dynamic healthcare environment.

This interdisciplinary patient safety and healthcare quality master's program is designed for healthcare professionals seeking to develop essential competencies to assess, monitor, and improve healthcare outcomes in community-based care delivery settings, hospitals, and other healthcare organizations.

Graduates of this program will be prepared to lead teams in a wide variety of quality and risk management initiatives including:

  • Aligning the patient safety, risk, and quality functions within the organization
  • Ensuring that the patient safety, risk, and quality activities are aligned with the strategic goals of the organization
  • Assessing current activities in patient safety, risk, and quality to clarify responsibilities and reduce duplication of effort
  • Establishing a structure that ensures that patient care activities are addressed in a coordinated manner involving the patient safety, risk, and quality functions
  • Assembling a team to ensure that the structure for patient safety, risk, and quality activities maximizes legal protections while allowing for the flow of information across all functions
  • Coordinating process changes, data collection, data analysis, monitoring, and evaluation
  • Evaluating the roles of patient safety, risk, and quality as the organization's needs change

Additional Information

For more information about this program, contact:

Graduate Nursing Division
CNHPGraduateDivision@drexel.edu

Additional information is also available on Drexel's College of Nursing and Health Professions MS in Quality, Safety and Risk Management in Healthcare webpage and on the Drexel University Online MS in Quality, Safety and Risk Management in Healthcare webpage.

Admission Requirements (MS)

  • A Bachelor of Science degree from a regionally accredited institution of higher education
  • 3.0 or above on all previous coursework or the last 60.0 credits completed. Applications with a GPA less than a 3.0 may be considered on an individual basis.
  • Official transcripts from all previous educational institutions are required.
  • Two professional references required from colleagues or supervisors who can attest to the applicant’s knowledge, skill, and potential aptitude for graduate study
    • Letters of recommendations are waived for students with a 3.0 GPA or higher
  • Personal statement (no more than two pages and no less than one page double-spaced) that will give the admissions committee a better understanding of the following:
    • Why you are choosing this particular program of study
    • Your plans upon completion of the certificate
    • How your current work experience will enhance your experience in this program
  • Curriculum vitae or resume
  • Copies of any licensure and certification documents
  • While specific experience is not required for applicants to the track, previous related work experience may make an applicant more competitive.

TOEFL Requirement

International applicants, as well as immigrants to the United States and United States permanent residents whose native language is not English and who have not received a bachelor’s degree or higher in the U.S., Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand or the United Kingdom, must show proficiency in English speaking as well as listening, writing, and reading. U.S. citizens born on U.S. military bases abroad may be waived from the TOEFL requirement after providing documentation of this status; otherwise, applicants must meet one of the following requirements:

If you take the TOEFLiBT exam, you are required to have a minimum combined score for the listening, writing, and reading sections of 79 plus a speaking section score of 26 or higher.

If you take the TOEFL, you are required to have a minimum score of 550 or higher and a Test of Spoken English score (TSE) of 55 or higher.

Degree Requirements

Core Courses
IPS 502Advanced Ethical Decision Making in Health Care 3.0
IPS 503Confronting Issues in Contemporary Health Care Environments3.0
IPS 544Quality and Safety in Healthcare3.0
RSCH 503Research Methods and Biostatistics3.0
RSCH 504Evaluation and Translation of Health Research3.0
Major Courses
IPS 501Legal Compliance: Structure and Implementation4.5
IPS 504Regulations in Health Care4.5
IPS 505Health Care Quality and the Legal Context4.5
IPS 506HIPAA: A Patient’s Legal Right to Privacy4.5
IPS 584Analysis of Performance Standards in Healthcare Quality 3.0
IPS 585Science of Safety, Human Factors, and System Thinking3.0
IPS 586Creating a Culture of Safety2.0
IPS 601Quality, Safety and Risk Management Capstone5.0
Total Credits46.0

Sample Plan of Study (MS)

First Year
FallCreditsWinterCreditsSpringCreditsSummerCredits
IPS 5023.0IPS 5443.0IPS 5064.5IPS 5054.5
IPS 5033.0IPS 5014.5RSCH 5033.0RSCH 5043.0
 6 7.5 7.5 7.5
Second Year
FallCreditsWinterCreditsSpringCredits 
IPS 5044.5IPS 5853.0IPS 6015.0 
IPS 5843.0IPS 5862.0  
 7.5 5 5 
Total Credits 46
  • Schedule of Classes
  • All Course Descriptions
  • Co-op
  • Academic Advising
  • Admissions
  • Tuition & Fees
LEARN MORE