This required three-semester capstone course provides MSc HSLI students with hands-on experience in the leadership of health systems innovation and transformation. Students in this course will work on a systems innovation project related to one of the following health systems building blocks: Health Care Financing. Health Workforce Planning. Health Services Delivery and Redesign. Data and Information Systems. Healthcare Governance. Health Technologies.

This course is designed to fulfill two primary goals: 1) To provide students with an opportunity to apply the conceptual and theoretical grounding obtained in HSLI core courses. Students will think analytically and practically about basic concepts of health systems, innovation, entrepreneurship, health sector strategy, and innovation and change management and participate in and/or observe the role of leaders and leadership in these processes. 2) To provide students with experiential knowledge in designing and developing a creative solution to a specific health systems problem, using technological, managerial, or business model innovation. The innovation should address at least one of the following health systems performance goals: access, quality, efficiency, and safety.

Students will pursue several specific course objectives: 1) Learn how to collaborate in the development of solutions to real needs using any or all of data, literature, peer/colleague interviews, and health systems innovation methodologies. 2) Develop expertise in one particular health systems area, thus understanding the social, political (including any or all of interpersonal, interprofessional, departmental, hospital, institutional, provincial or federal politics), and economic context and leverage points that influence the innovation process in the health sector. 3) Gain an understanding of the local health care context for implementing health care innovation. 4) Develop working relationships with stakeholders to define the innovation challenge and develop an appropriate solution set. 5) Build leadership skills in disciplined problem analysis, stakeholder management, innovation design, business plan preparation, solution development, validation, presentation and public speaking, performance evaluation of tasks and managing people and expectation.