Cedars-Sinai opened a classroom last week for its first accredited master’s degree program in health delivery science.

The 958-bed nonprofit hospital and academic health science center in Beverly Grove designed the curriculum for doctors, pharmacists and other professionals from various sectors of health care as well as allied industries such as insurance.

Cedars-Sinai’s goal: to teach medical pros to use digital tools and data to measure and improve the quality of health care and deliver it to patients more efficiently.

“Almost 18 percent of the gross domestic product goes to health care, and there’s a science behind how to use those resources effectively,” said Dr. Brennan Spiegel, program director for Cedars-Sinai, in a statement. “It’s about improving quality of care while also reducing cost.”

The new executive-style program at the teaching hospital aims to prepare professionals for a health care marketplace that increasingly rewards providers for the value of their care over the volume of procedures.

It will emphasize applied analytical skills, digital health science, health care finance and performance improvement strategies, among other subjects. The curriculum also will cover the latest advances in social media analytics, smartphone health apps, therapeutic virtual reality and wearable biosensors.

The 15-month program, accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges, will include after-hours classroom instruction followed by five months of health care field work.

– Dana Bartholomew