Health Sector Accounting Curriculum Challenges

Abstract

Health sector accounting plays a critical role in improving financial transparency, resource allocation, reimbursement accuracy, insurance design, and regulatory compliance in healthcare systems. However, conventional accounting curricula are oriented toward corporate reporting and do not sufficiently address health-specific complexities such as cost-of-care modeling, clinical coding, public health spending, donor-funded program accounting, and hospital financial management. This paper analyzes curriculum challenges in health sector accounting education, categorizing gaps into structural, technological, regulatory, and skill-based dimensions. The study proposes an integrated competency framework and curriculum reform model that aligns accounting education with health financing, insurance systems, digital health information infrastructures, and government health budgeting. Findings highlight the need for faculty development, cross-disciplinary collaboration, and experiential training with public health institutions and hospital systems.