Health Studies York University

Overview

To obtain the Health Studies BHS degree at York University, you will specialize in one of three areas: 

Health Policy

Health Policy is a unique science, which involves law, ethics, public health, management, government, economics, epidemiology, statistics and the decision sciences. It involves the process of developing and implementing ideas on improving the public's health.

There are four main areas of policy interest:

• Public Health
• Health Care Services
• Mental Health
• Environmental Health

Health policy governs the interactions between patients and their health care providers, namely physicians and hospitals. It is important as it affects a patients' quality of life - access to care, patients' rights, research funding, clinical trials, reimbursement, genetic testing, pain management, privacy and care at the end-of-life. It also affects the decisions a physician or hospital can make.

What makes this program unique:

In York's Health Policy program, you will examine comparative approaches and outcomes in a variety of settings (public, private, not-for-profit) with the goal of developing policies that are both proactive and sustainable. While working toward your degree, you will develop the analytical framework and tools that will enable you to participate effectively in policy research, development and implementation at all levels in the health care system.

Health Management

The health care field is one of the fastest growing, dynamic and personally rewarding, careers in Canada and it provides many innovative career opportunities. Health managers play a distinct role. Their job is to ensure that preventative, diagnostic and treatment health services are efficiently and effectively made available to the general public. To do that, managerial excellence is the top priority.

The effective health manager communicates and works well with others, manages and allocates resources, conducts evaluations and understands both the legal and business environments. Health care managers include:

• Generalists who manage or help to manage an entire facility.
• Specialists who manage specific clinical departments or services found only in the health care industry.

Experts predict the growth of the health care industry will continue for several years, providing many opportunities for energetic, creative health managers who can work with technology.

What makes this program unique:

The Health Management stream will equip you with the skills needed to understand and contribute to the management of health care organizations: strategic planning, finance and human resources.

You will take courses in organizational behaviour, health services management, information management systems and health care leadership. This range of courses will help you develop an understanding of how organizations shift strategies, create alliances with other organizations and respond to changing environmental pressures in order to prepare them to work in both the hospital and community health sectors.

Health Informatics

Information technology is increasingly used in the management and administration of health care systems. From the electronic storage of patient records to the collection and analysis of health information, the use of electronic information is an increasingly important tool for modern practitioners and administrators.

The Bachelor of Health Science in Health Informatics teaches you how to use and develop information technologies and management techniques such as health information systems, electronic health records, telehealth, and the Internet to improve the quality of health care.

You will be equipped with the knowledge and practical skills required by new positions in the health sector like health data quality analyst, health information system designer, electronic patient chart analyst or system integration specialist.

What makes this program unique:

An optional Co-op is available in this program.

York's Health Studies program is ideal for anyone wishing to enhance their knowledge and skills in a broad range of issues related to health ethics, comparative health administration and health care planning. Selecting from courses such as Perspectives of Health and Health Promotion, Health Ethics, Sociology of Health, and Health Care Law, you will gain a solid understanding of the issues facing practitioners and administrators of health services.