Department of Health and Community Services

California State University, Chico

Chico, CA  95929-0505

530-898-6661

PORTFOLIO GUIDELINES

Student Assessment Outcome Requirement
B.S. Health Science
Option: Health Services Administration

The BS in Health Science: Health Services Administration is a competency-based curriculum which is designed to enable students to fulfill the requirements for an entry-level health services administration position.  CSU, Chico is a full Certified  member of the Association of University Programs in Health Administration (AUPHA), the equivalent of national program accreditation—one of only three in California.

The courses you complete for your major will give you the knowledge and skills you will need to function effectively as a health administrator in a variety of settings (Appendix A).  Evidence of these skills includes papers, projects, and activities which directly apply to the areas of responsibility critical to health administration.

1.  What is a portfolio?

A portfolio is a carefully selected, purposeful, organization of your professionally related academic accomplishments. It demonstrates that you have the entry-level competency skill standards for health administrators.  When these materials chosen from your course work are compiled in one package, it is called a portfolio.

2.  Is the portfolio a requirement for graduation?

The portfolio is a requirement for all majors in Health Science, (Gerontology, Health Education, and Health Administration).  You will start your portfolio as soon as you start taking courses in the major and add to it each semester.  You will present your portfolio during HCSV 490 (Internship seminar) which is generally taken during your last semester.

 3.  What is the purpose of the portfolio?

The health services administration portfolio allows you to organize your accomplishments so you can:

·      Identify your strengths and weaknesses as they apply to your choice of careers.

·      Document your professional skills for a potential employer.

·      Track your progress and professional growth as you progress through the program.

·      Identify skill areas which still need attention.

In addition, the portfolio provides the Department with materials for assessing the competency of our graduates and assists faculty in identifying strengths and weaknesses in the program curriculum.

4. How should I organize, select, and present materials for my portfolio?

Skill and knowledge bases for the health services administrator are divided into four major areas of responsibility and competency critical to the profession, each of which has four or five sub-topics (Appendix B).  On their respective syllabi, instructors for each of the required professional core courses will identify materials appropriate for inclusion in the portfolio collection.  In addition, your portfolio will include several items related to career planning. 

Select and organize your portfolio by competency areas.  Your portfolio must include five mandatory times and seven selected items.  The mandatory items are:

·      HCSV 530: An individual case study that shows your problem solving and business writing abilities.

·      A PowerPoint presentation (printout of slides)

·      HCSV 490: Resume/cover letter

·      HCSV 490: Career planning exercise

·      HCSV 490:  Evaluation of internship

The selected items are two projects from each of competencies 1, 2, and 3, and one additional project from area 4.  You must have a minimum of twelve items in your portfolio.  In addition, you include other material that you feel was significant to you from other courses.

6. When is my portfolio to be submitted?

Your portfolio is due in HCSV 490, Internship Seminar, unless otherwise arranged by your advisor. Most majors take the HCSV 489 Internship and HCSV 290 Internship Seminar during the last semester before graduation.  You will share your portfolio with your classmates and the HCSV faculty according to given guidelines. You will not receive credit for the seminar unless your portfolio has been presented and assessed.

Prior to submitting the portfolio, you will prepare a reflective essay identifying your strengths and weakness, as they relate to your career choices.  Additional direction will be provided in the Internship Seminar.

 

Appendix A: Health services administration conceptual map

 

CSU, CHICO HEALTH SERVICES ADMINISTRATION PROGRAM

Integrative courses

HCSV 489  Internship (5) and HCSV 490  Intern. Seminar (1)

HCSV 530 Capstone Seminar in HSA

Application/
specialization

courses

Health administration electives:

·        HCSV 541 Health in the Later Years

·        HCSV 450 EMS System Planning

·        HCSV 451 Administration EMS Organizations

·        HCSV 579 Grant Writing/Other Fundraising

·        MINS 301 Corporate Information Technology

 

Health services administration concept courses

HCSV 430 Mgmt. of health orgs.

 

 

 

 

HCSV 433 Finance of h/c orgs.

HCSV 435  Health Policy/Politics

 

 

 

ACCT 202 Managerial
Accounting

HCSV 431 Health Care Delivery System

 

MKTG 305 Survey of Marketing

MGMT 304 Human Resources

ACCT 201 Financial Accounting

HCSV 332

Healthcare Laws and Ethics

HCSV 320 Health and Disease

or

HCSV 463 Epidemiology

HCSV 330 Mgmt Principles for Healthcare

HCSV 333
Medical Economics

HCSV 321 Community Health

 

Foundation

courses

HCSV 328  Health/Ethnic Americans

MGMT 300 Communication in Business

MATH 105 Statistics

 

Organization

Personnel

Financial

Health system and policy

Health

Health services organizations

 

 

Appendix B: Competency areas and portfolio items

 

Competency area

Portfolio items

1.    The graduate in Health Services Administration will have knowledge, skills, and beliefs related to the health care delivery system and will be able to:

·      Identify participants in the system and describe their roles, responsibilities, and trends and issues related to them;

·      HCSV 321: Community Health Agency Paper

·      HCSV 330: Career paper

·      HCSV 431: Health organization paper

·      Discuss, describe, and analyze the impact of politics and economics on the health care delivery system and on healthcare organizations; and be able to participate in influencing political decisions;

·      HCSV 435: Interest group profile

·      HCSV 328: Panel project

·      HCSV 333: Term Paper Project

·      Be able to apply laws and regulations that impact healthcare organizations (e.g., employment, antitrust, patient consent, confidentiality);

·      HCSV 332: Legal case study

·      Discuss the major ethical issues that are affecting health care and be able to articulate their own beliefs.

·      HCSV 332: Ethics case study

 

Competency area

Portfolio items

2.    The graduate in Health Services Administration will have knowledge, skills, and beliefs related to healthcare organizations and will be able to:

·      Describe the governance structure in health care organizations, including the role of the governing board, administrators, and committees;

·      HCSV 430: Case studies

·      HCSV 430: Health care department paper

·      HCSV 330: Case studies

·      HCSV 530: Case studies

·      HCSV 490: Organization description paper

·      HCSV 320: Agency review

 

·      Describe how the medical/professional staff is governed, how membership to the staff is granted, and what entity has responsibility for disciplinary action

·      Describe the roles, responsibilities, and functions of various services within healthcare organizations, including risk management,  financial services, materials management, and facility management

·      Be able to measure the quality of services and apply general approaches to quality management problems

·      Be able to utilize the jargon and language of health care organizations

 

Competency area

Portfolio items

­3.    The graduate in Health Services Administration will have knowledge, skills, and beliefs related to management processes, including program planning, implementation, and evaluation; management of human resources; and financial management and will be able to:

·      Be able to develop program plans, including defining problems in appropriate terms, setting goals and objectives, using statistical data, interpreting published data, researching issues, developing--and deciding from among--alternatives, and evaluating results and impacts;

·      HCSV 425:
Research Report

·      HCSV 530: Case studies

·      HCSV 579: Final grant proposal 

 

·      Be able to manage day-to-day organizational activities, including handling the informal, on-going flow of activities, managing time effectively, developing priorities, making considered decisions, and reviewing/evaluating performances and outcomes;

·      HCSV 330: Case studies

·      HCSV 530: Case studies

·      Be able to manage people, including team building, networking, coordinating, committee management, motivating, resolving conflict/mediating, presenting, persuading, supervising staff, and conducting employee performance evaluations;

·      HCSV 530: Case studies

·      MGMT 301: HR simulation

 

·      Be able to manage program/organizational finances, including applying basic principles of budgeting, capital financing, and case-mix budgeting, using the budget as an internal control device, and applying various financial ratios; be able to identify sources of operating revenue, and understand the impact of third-party payers (particularly managed care organizations) on revenues.

·      ACCT 201:  Individual and group assignments

·      ACCT 202:  Individual and group assignments

·      HCSV 433: Financial cases

·      HCSV 530: Financial case study

 

Competency area

Portfolio items

4.    The graduate in Health Services Administration will have competent communication skills, including written and spoken communication, use of electronic media and formal presentations/business reports.

·      Write a business style letter

·      HCSV 435: Bill analysis

·      HCSV 530: Case studies

·      Write a business style memo

·      HCSV 435: Position paper

·      HCSV 530: Case studies

·      Write a business report

·      HCSV 530: Case studies*

·      Make a professional presentation

·      A PowerPoint presentation done in a major class

 

Competency area

Portfolio items

Career planning

·      HCSV 490: Resume/cover letter*

·      HCSV 490: Career planning exercise*

·      HCSV 490:  Evaluation of internship*

*Required items

Guidelines for health services administration portfolio reflective essay and presentation

For all Health Services Administration Option students in Health Science, the portfolio is a requirement for graduation.  For specific information please see Portfolio Guidelines available in the department office or on the web at http://www.csuchico.edu/hcsv/hsa_portfolio.html. 

The purpose of the portfolio is to:

·      Identify your strengths and weaknesses as they apply to your choice of careers.

·      Document your professional skills for a potential employer.

·      Track your progress and professional growth as you progress through the program.

·      Identify skill areas which still need attention.

In addition, the portfolio provides the Department with materials for assessing the competency of our graduates and assists faculty in identifying strengths and weaknesses in the program curriculum.

1.      Finalize your portfolio.

2.      Prepare a reflective essay identifying your strengths and weakness, as they relate to your career choices.  Based on the materials you have selected to include in your portfolio, respond to the following:

  • What does the portfolio tell me about my strengths and weaknesses?  How so?
  • What assignments and topics were the most and least interesting to me? Why?
  • Were my best (and favorite) assignments related to people, to finances, to planning, or to some other area of health services administration?  How so?
  • What careers best relate to the areas that I have identified as my strongest?  Why?

3.      During the final Internship Seminar meeting, present your portfolio to your small breakout group, your instructor, and invited guests.

  • Identify the portfolio items you have selected
  • Identify the strengths and weaknesses from your reflective essay.
  • Identify the career paths suggested by the portfolio
  • 5 minutes maximum