MHSA vs. Healthcare MBA

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Good Morning All,

I am currently at a crossroads when it comes to deciding what program to pursue. In lieu of seeing an advisor as I am still a couple of months away from completing my BSN, I wanted to post here for some advice.

Background: *please skip to the next paragraph for my core question(s) if BG doesn't interest you*

I have been an RN for almost 5 years, 4 of those years in MICU and step-down. I will be completing my BSN this summer. Originally, as I truly love patient care, I was planning on pursuing an NP degree in Acute Care. However, as I've gone through my BSN program and have also grown exponentially at work, I came to a glaring conclusion: though I love the bedside, it will inevitably wear me down far before retirement age and I will always be a "slave to the system" (that is--crazy shifts, random & chaotic schedules that are not conducive to healthy work-life balance, and the politics that are felt exclusively at the bedside). To clarify: I am not naive to the politics that exist all throughout healthcare, but those of you that work at the bedside might note how the politics in that capacity tie you down to sometimes making decisions that are incongruent with what you want/need for your patient... anyway: this has led me to consider the administrative/managerial side of nursing & hospital culture as I've always been a natural leader, and have also come to enjoy many facets of this arena as I've worn different hats at my current organization (though I have not completely left the bedside).

I wanted to hear from those of you currently in programs such as the MHSA (Masters in Health Services Admin) or Healthcare MBA programs, or those who have completed similar ones and are now in the real-world workforce, to find out which one you think is more suited for managing units or hospitals? What kind of positions did you land? Which one might be more suited for a Nurse? Is a nursing background even an advantage for such programs/careers? Some people even suggest just getting an MSN?

Any and all insight is welcome.

For those interested, I will almost certainly pursue this at Florida International University (FIU) as it is local and has a GREAT national reputation as a business school.

Thanks,

Angel

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Specializes in Critical Care, Education.

If you want to move into nursing leadership, you'll need an MSN because this is advanced education in OUR profession.... also required by accreditation standards for leadership positions that are responsible for overseeing/managing nursing practice.

There are many non-clinical MSN options you could choose. One of the newest ones that is generating a lot of industry buzz is MSN in Patient Safety & Quality... I think that SNHU has an online program & I'm sure that there are more out there. Just about every large school has MSN-Admin track. Another great option is a combo MSN, such as MSN/MBA or JD/MSN.

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Thanks for the info! Def some things to consider.

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