Student Perceptions of a National Healthcare Systems Course: Evidence from a Cross-sectional Survey of Undergraduate Students

National Healthcare Systems are an important aspect to study for health administration students, as they provide them with the knowledge and skills necessary to comprehend the organization, financing, and delivery of health services in a nation. The understanding of national healthcare systems allows students to examine healthcare policies, assess healthcare systems' performance, and recognize the strengths and weaknesses in the health care delivery system. Hence, the purpose of this study is to gain relevant and reliable data from the respondents to find out their opinions, experiences, and perceptions about the National Healthcare Systems (HSM479) course taken by the Bachelor in Health Administration (BA265) students. Data were gathered from 83 students who had finished the HSM479 course via online surveys on Google Forms. A structured questionnaire was created that focused on different dimensions such as Course Content and Relevance, Course Teaching and Learning, Student Engagement and Participation, Knowledge and Skill Development, Assessment and Feedback, and Perception and Satisfaction. The collected data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and inferential statistics. The results revealed high levels of sense of relevance, student satisfaction, and positive learning outcomes among the respondents. Additionally, the course content, students' participation and skill development were significantly correlated with students' satisfaction in taking this course. The findings are consistent with maintaining continuity of higher education healthcare system education in higher education curricula, especially in health administration and allied health programs.