Health Care Policy

Masters in Health Care Administration

MHA 525

Breyer State University
Instructor: Mark C. Barabas, BS in BA, DHA

SYLLABUS

COURSE OVERVIEW: The course begins with a historic look at the healthcare delivery systems and concludes with a review of current health policy issues. You are presented with health policy issues from an economic and political perspective. Healthcare financing policy issues dominate the text just as they overwhelm state and federal governments in real life. Competitive market incentives are put in perspective and the economic self-interest of the component parts of the healthcare delivery system are analyzed. Healthcare reform issues appear throughout the text, as they do in your daily newspaper. Controversial health policy issues, such as, the buying and selling of the transplant organs are reviewed. Current topics, including the malpractice crisis, cost shuffling and managed care give you a solid foundation of knowledge for managerial decision making. Learn to distinguish the difference between for-profit and non-profit hospitals through their market behavior. You will also study the basics of the Canadian Healthcare System. The Board knowledge base you obtain in this course is designed to equip you, as a future manager, to deal with the challenges in the most complex industry in the world.

TEXTBOOKS: The following is the required textbook for this course.

Book 1: Health Policy Issues: An Economic Perspective, Third Edition. Paul J. Feldstein, PhD. AUPHA/HAP. 2003: ISBN # 1-56793-201-0.

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TIME FRAME: This is a four-semester hour course. This course is allotted ten weeks of time. You must complete all of the requirements for the course successfully by the end of the ten week period. The first day of week one will begin the day that you register for the course, or the day which you notify me that your textbook has arrived and you are ready to begin your studies. Please be cognizant of the time frame. It is rare that extensions of time are permitted, unless you have good justification. Upon successfully completion of this course, you will be awarded four semester hours of credit.

WRITTEN ASSIGNMENTS: Please go to the assignment section of the classroom for assignments.

RESEARCH PAPER: You are also required to write a 5-10 page research paper on the "Health Policy Issue" of your choice.

GRADING: You will receive a letter grade for this course. You must receive a minimum of a "C" grade to pass this course. You will be graded on:

1). Ability to follow completely the directions for completion of your Learning Portfolio.
2). Use of proper grammar.
3). Writing style, how clearly you convey the Theory of the text to working situations.
4). The quality of your analysis.
5). Your ability to show you can apply the knowledge gained in the workplace.

The grading scale for this course is as follows:

90-100%    = A
80-89%      = B
70-79%      = C
Below 70% = Fail

COURSE ACCELERATION: It is permissible for students to accelerate in this course. This is an individual choice that your instructor will honor.

EXAMINATION: There is no examination for this course.

INSTRUCTOR INFORMATION: The instructor for this course is Mark C. Barabas, CHE, BS in BA, DHA.

Current, CEO, Mercy Suburban Hospital, Mercy Health SystemFormer, Hospital COO.

Former, Adjunct faculty @ Youngstown State University and Lebanon Valley College.

Former, Chair of the Board for two national Health Care Organizations.

Current, Editorial Board JONA's Healthcare, Law, Regulation and Ethics Journal and frequent contributor of published articles.

Winner of the Graduate Literary Award from the University of Toronto Department of Healthcare Administration for 2001.

Current and former member of numerous non-profit community organizations Board of Trustees.

Hospital Accreditation Administrative Surveyor for the healthcare Facility Accreditation Program.

See Breyer State website "Faculty" for more information.

INSTRUCTOR AVAILABILITY: Upon registration, you will be given my email address. I am available periodically through email, so please email me any questions that may occur. That is why I am here. I will do everything to help you as much as possible. Please do not wait until the end of the class to try to get help. It will be too late. Anytime your grade falls below C, I will try to contact you about it. If I do not, please do not hesitate to contact me through email.

COURSE OBJECTIVES: Upon completion of this course, you will be able to:

1). Learn to interpret data for decision making in the healthcare arena.
2). Become conversant with major health policy issues and how they affect the country.
3). Study medical expenditures from the health policy perspective.
4). Review the need for health insurance and its impact on the consumer.
5). Understand the rationing of medical services.
6). Review Medicare, Medicaid and their impact on physician. payments, supply and the practice of Medicare.
7). Learn the health policy issues which contributed to the malpractice crisis.
8). Determine the differences between for-profit and non-profit hospitals and the effect of competition.
9). Review managed care issues related to cost shifting and price controls.
10). Discuss the impact of the internet on healthcare.
11). Study supply and demand aspects of doctors and nurses.
12). Relate rising healthcare cost and the high prices of prescription drugs.
13). Understand why prescription drugs are less expensive overseas.
14). Decide if transplantation organs should be a commodity.
15). Review the government's role in health policy issues.
16). Study National Healthcare Insurance models.
17). Learn the financing aspects of long-term care.
18). Review the politics of health care reform and failures of the Clinton proposal.

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