SAQA

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SOUTH AFRICAN QUALIFICATIONS AUTHORITY

REGISTERED QUALIFICATION:

Master of Philosophy in Health Innovation

SAQA QUAL ID	QUALIFICATION TITLE
102151	Master of Philosophy in Health Innovation
ORIGINATOR
University of Cape Town
PRIMARY OR DELEGATED QUALITY ASSURANCE FUNCTIONARY			NQF SUB-FRAMEWORK
CHE - Council on Higher Education			HEQSF - Higher Education Qualifications Sub-framework
QUALIFICATION TYPE	FIELD		SUBFIELD
Master's Degree	Field 09 - Health Sciences and Social Services		Promotive Health and Developmental Services
ABET BAND	MINIMUM CREDITS	PRE-2009 NQF LEVEL	NQF LEVEL	QUAL CLASS
Undefined	180	Not Applicable	NQF Level 09	Regular-Provider-ELOAC
REGISTRATION STATUS		SAQA DECISION NUMBER	REGISTRATION START DATE	REGISTRATION END DATE
Reregistered		EXCO 0821/24	2021-07-01	2027-06-30
LAST DATE FOR ENROLMENT		LAST DATE FOR ACHIEVEMENT
2028-06-30		2031-06-30

In all of the tables in this document, both the pre-2009 NQF Level and the NQF Level is shown. In the text (purpose statements, qualification rules, etc), any references to NQF Levels are to the pre-2009 levels unless specifically stated otherwise.

This qualification does not replace any other qualification and is not replaced by any other qualification.

PURPOSE AND RATIONALE OF THE QUALIFICATION

Purpose:
The qualification aims to equip students with the tools to design, implement and evaluate context-appropriate interventions to improve health and to conduct health-related research at all points of the innovation chain. This will be done in the context of health-and healthcare systems and an examination of the international, regional, national, government, civil society, community and private sector efforts addressing healthcare challenges faced by developing countries in general, and South Africa in particular.

Knowledge generation at an advanced level will be informed by engagement with the health context. This qualification will teach theories related to innovation, systems thinking and design thinking, but will be practice oriented, with projects and a dissertation that entail the design of health interventions, with a focus on implementation and attention to the end user. Thus the entire innovation value chain will be emphasised: identifying needs; designing interventions; and implementing interventions, all with reference to context and appropriate design. This qualification will enable students to use their discipline-specific knowledge, gained in a range of undergraduate Degrees, but will also draw on other disciplines through collaboration with peers and experts.

Graduates will be able to contribute to the health sector, both private and public, Non-governmental organisations (NGOs), and government departments by applying a systematic approach to identifying the potential for, and then designing, interventions to improve health, with consideration to the context in which interventions will operate.

In the first semester of the programme, the course work will emphasise the South African health context. The first year will be anchored in a course on health innovation, comprising both theory and practice. In the first semester of the second year, students will take a course on entrepreneurship where they will experience the steps that follow successful innovation, i.e. building a sustainable enterprise with a developed innovation as a foundation. The qualification will culminate in a dissertation, in which students design, implement and/or evaluate a health innovation.

Rationale:
Innovation is generally thought to be key to overcoming the current health challenges faced in South Africa and globally. The term "innovation" covers the entire value chain from the generation of new ideas and their transformation into new or improved products, services, methods, processes, to the implementation, and does not only refer to the introduction and adaptation of technologies. In the context of this qualification, any intervention designed and implemented to improve health is an innovation. Thus, this qualification will focus on the design, implementation and evaluation of innovations to improve health and will enable students to understand the full innovation chain and the interdependencies that exist across it. Students will carry out the dissertation research projects at specific points in the innovation value chain with an appreciation of the broader context of their specific project, the broader appreciation having been gained through course work which will have included individual and group projects.

Existing Postgraduate qualifications related to public health tend to focus on analysis to enhance the understanding of health challenges and the burden of the disease. The design of interventions or innovations is not addressed in a purposeful manner, even when research projects involve the implementation or evaluation of interventions. This qualification will guide students systematically through the process of innovation and will rely on the theory and practice of systems thinking and design thinking to achieve this purpose. They will learn to apply a methodology of innovation.

The institution receives enquiries about and applications for the institution's existing Master of Science (MSc) in Biomedical Engineering from students who are interested in innovation and health, but are not eligible because they do not meet the requirement of having a 4-year Degree in n a quantitative discipline. They usually do, however, have a background in life or health sciences that would equip them to enter a qualification in Health Innovation. The qualification would also be open to students from non-health sciences backgrounds, who have an interest in health, opening a new source of students.

LEARNING ASSUMED TO BE IN PLACE AND RECOGNITION OF PRIOR LEARNING

Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL):
Not applicable.

Entry Requirements:
The minimum requirements for admission into this Masters Degree is either a:

Honours Degree.
Or

4-year Professional Degree.
Or

Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery (MBChB).

RECOGNISE PREVIOUS LEARNING?

QUALIFICATION RULES

This qualification comprises compulsory and elective modules at Level 8 and 9 totalling 180 Credits.

Compulsory Modules Level 8, 12 Credits:
> Health and Community Development, 12 Credits.

Elective Modules Level 8, 12 Credits (Choose 1):

Medical devices and instrumentation overview, 12 Credits.

Introduction to medical imaging and image processing, 12 Credits.

Applied electrophysiology, 12 Credits.

Compulsory Modules Level 9, 156 Credits:

Public Health and Society, 12 Credits.

Medicine and the Arts, 24 Credits.

Health Innovation and Design, 42 Credits.

Biomedical Engineering Overview, 8 Credits.

Innovation and Entrepreneurship, 10 Credits.

Minor dissertation, 60 Credits.

EXIT LEVEL OUTCOMES

1. Understand the local and global health context.
2. Demonstrate a comprehensive and systematic knowledge base in the design, implementation and evaluation of innovations for improved health.
3. Demonstrate a coherent and critical understanding of the theories of systems, design and innovation.
4. Demonstrate an ability to relate theory to practice and vice versa and to think epistemologically.
5. Master the application of research methods, towards a dissertation under supervision.
6. Demonstrate an ability to identify, analyse and address complex health problems drawing systematically on systems thinking and design methodologies.
7. Demonstrate advanced information retrieval and processing skills; identification, critical analysis, synthesis and independent evaluation of quantitative and/or qualitative data.
8. Demonstrate an ability to undertake a study of the literature and current research in health innovation under supervision.
9. Present effectively and communicate the results of research to specialist and non-specialist audiences using the resources of an academic/ professional discourse.
10. Produce a dissertation that meets the standards of scholarly/professional writing.
11. Demonstrate the capacity to critically self-evaluate and continue to learn independently for continuing scholarly development.
12. Manage learning tasks autonomously, professionally and ethically.
13. Criticise rigorously and evaluate current research and participate in scholarly debates on health innovation.
14. Evaluate critically own and others' work with justification.

ASSOCIATED ASSESSMENT CRITERIA

The following Associated Assessment Criteria will be applied in an integrated manner across the Exit level Outcomes.

Demonstrate a coherent understanding of the theory, research methodologies and techniques relevant to emergency medicine by covering advance research methodologies, bias, confounders and biostatistics.

Demonstrate an understanding of and ability to practice evidence-based medicine and critical thinking.

Develop own management protocols in trauma, toxicology and environmental medicine cases.

Conduct a risk assessment, and prepare, plan, communicate and respond in medical disaster situations.

Understand key aspects of adult learning theory, small group teaching, use of virtual learning environments (VLE) and electronic learning resources and clinical skills-based teaching.

Demonstrate an understanding of and ability to apply emergency medicine and management skills in difficult or hostile environments.

Demonstrate a understanding of advance epidemiology and research.

Demonstrate an understanding of clinical skills training, and an understanding of the principles of the physics of ultrasound and ultrasound modes.

Understand the local and global health context, the social determinants of health.

Understand the structure of the South African health system.

Be familiar with systems, design and innovation theories and be able to apply them to health problems and proposed interventions.

Identify opportunities for intervention to address health problems.

Design, implement and evaluate health innovations.

Understand local research and industry activities related to technological innovation for health.

Understand that the body, health and disease can be conceptualised from different perspectives.

Identify opportunities and implement mechanisms for creating social and economic value through interventions for better health.

Complete a research project, culminating in a dissertation, on the design, implementation or evaluation of an innovation for improved health.

Integrated Assessment:
Assessment will be in alignment with the assessment of other Master of Philosophy (MPhil) qualifications and will also adhere to the institutions' overall assessment policy. Dissertations will be externally examined. Coursework will be assessed at prescribed points - formative assessment during coursework modules, and summative assessment at the end of modules. As this is a Postgraduate qualification, assessment will take the form of written submission and oral presentations that require students to engage critically with course material, literature, and with their practical work, rather than traditional examinations.

Assessment will particularly test desired outcomes, ie students' ability to:

Reflect critically on theories related to innovation, systems thinking and design thinking, and their application to health innovation.

Contribute to the development of knowledge related to the design, implementation and evaluation of innovations at an advanced level, i.e. at a level that integrates the disciplinary grounding of an Honours-equivalent Degree with the conceptual frameworks of systems thinking and design thinking, as well as with contextual knowledge of health and health care systems.

Deal with complex health issues systematically and creatively with reference to appropriate theories and frameworks, particularly relating to innovation, systems thinking and design thinking.

Make critical use of data and information in assessing health problems and considering solutions.

Design and critically appraise research on health innovation.

Communicate research findings and project outcomes clearly to specialist and non-specialist audiences.

Independently plan and implement tasks with a theoretical underpinning.

INTERNATIONAL COMPARABILITY

This qualification is compared with the following:

Master of Healthcare Innovation - Arizona State University.

Master of Medical Sciences in Global Health Delivery - Harvard University.

Master of Healthcare Policy, Innovation and Management - Maastricht University.

UCT's MPhil in Health Innovation is similar to the MSc Healthcare and Design at Imperial College London (https://www.imperial.ac.uk/study/pg/medicine/healthcare-and-design/) in the following ways:

Entrants are from a wide range of backgrounds.

Students develop an understanding of the national health system.

There is a focus on designing innovations for health with attention to context.

Design principles are covered.

Students gain practical experience in designing solutions to a health challenge.

Students develop a business case for a health innovation.

ARTICULATION OPTIONS

This qualification allows for the following articulation options.

Vertical Articulation:

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) specialising in Emergency Medicine, Level 10.

Horizontal articulation is possible to the following Master's Degree programmes: Master of Public Health - the MPhil in Health Innovation enables students to gain an introduction to the health system and understanding of different health contexts, after which they might choose to focus on public health. Master's in Healthcare Technology Management - the MPhil in Health Innovation provides students with an introduction to healthcare technology design and implementation, after which they might choose to do a dissertation-only master's in Healthcare Technology Management, such as the one available at UCT.

MODERATION OPTIONS

N/A

CRITERIA FOR THE REGISTRATION OF ASSESSORS

N/A

NOTES

N/A

LEARNING PROGRAMMES RECORDED AGAINST THIS QUALIFICATION:

NONE

PROVIDERS CURRENTLY ACCREDITED TO OFFER THIS QUALIFICATION:

This information shows the current accreditations (i.e. those not past their accreditation end dates), and is the most complete record available to SAQA as of today. Some Primary or Delegated Quality Assurance Functionaries have a lag in their recording systems for provider accreditation, in turn leading to a lag in notifying SAQA of all the providers that they have accredited to offer qualifications and unit standards, as well as any extensions to accreditation end dates. The relevant Primary or Delegated Quality Assurance Functionary should be notified if a record appears to be missing from here.

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