Health Management and Policy (HMP)
Health Management and Policy is an interdisciplinary program providing students with a broad view of healthcare organizational structure and healthcare policy, while developing analytical skills that are integrated within courses and computer laboratories throughout the curriculum. Students are prepared to pursue careers in a wide range of healthcare organizations focusing on the business aspects and public health aspects within healthcare leadership. Graduates work in private practices, long-term care, rehabilitation facilities, hospitals, start-up organizations, urgent care centers, and other managed care organizations in such areas as finance, information systems, management, marketing, operations, project management, as well as public health departments, community health, community-based and home-health agencies, mental health facilities, regulatory bodies, consulting companies, and insurance companies.
The department's undergraduate program maintains full certification by the Association of University Programs in Health Administration (AUPHA). Students have the opportunity to become student members in the Medical Group Management Association (MGMA), American College of Healthcare Executives (ACHE), the Health Care Financial Management Association (HFMA), the American Public Health Association (APHA), and the New Hampshire Public Health Association (NHPHA) to establish a professional network and be informed on current issues within the field. The Health Management and Policy curriculum is approved under the New England Commission of Higher Education (NECHE).
Health Management & Policy (HMP)
HMP 401 - United States Health Care Systems
Credits: 4
Nature and functions of health care services and health professionals; impact of social, political, economic, ethical, professional, legal, and technological forces on health care systems. Current health policy issues.
Attributes: Social Science (Discovery)
Equivalent(s): HLTC 550, HMP 401H, HMP 401W
Grade Mode: Letter Grading
HMP 403 - Introduction to Public Health
Credits: 4
This course describes and defines “what is public health” and seeks to convey its critical importance and relevance to both public and individual (personal) wellbeing. It presents an overview of the structure, function, and organization of the public health system/services (government, proprietary, and voluntary sectors) and how they operate, emphasizing core functions and major divisions (public health administration, epidemiology and biostatistics, environmental health, social and behavioral health). Addresses the social, ethical, issues; bioterrorism; epidemics; obesity; tobacco, alcohol, and opioid use; violence. Seeks to challenge students to think critically about existing and emerging U.S. and global public health issues. Introduces public health careers.
Equivalent(s): HLTC 612
Grade Mode: Letter Grading
HMP 501 - Epidemiology and Community Medicine
Credits: 0 or 4
The distribution and determinants of disease, illness, and health in the community. Community health and illness measures, health status, and source of data. Development of hypotheses and study designs to reduce community health problems using epidemiological reasoning, methods, and analyses. Lab.
Attributes: Biological Science(Discovery); Discovery Lab Course
Equivalent(s): HAP 402, HAP 501, HMP 501H
Grade Mode: Letter Grading
HMP 512 - Using Data to Improve Human Health
Credits: 4
A digital revolution is transforming healthcare around the world. The amount of healthcare data being generated is growing exponentially by the day, facilitated by technology, such as Electronic Health Records and wearable health devices. Advances in software for mining, analyzing, and visualizing data are allowing researchers to unveil unprecedented insights. This course explores the role of data in advancing human health. Through a multidisciplinary approach, students will examine the collection, analysis, and ethical implications of health-related data. The course aims to foster critical thinking skills and an understanding of the interplay between technology and society in the context of healthcare.
Attributes: Environment,TechSociety(Disc)
Grade Mode: Letter Grading
View Course Learning Outcomes
- List different kinds of healthcare data.
- Describe the settings and technology used to capture different types of healthcare data.
- Explain how different types of healthcare data are used to improve human health.
- Analyze data through visualizations, descriptive statistics, and inferential statistics.
- Evaluate the results of an analysis and communicate them to decision-makers.
- Recognize the sources of bias in healthcare data and its impacts.
HMP 540 - Statistics for Health and Human Service Professionals
Credits: 4
A conceptual and analytical approach to the use of statistics in the health and human service professions. Emphasizes the logic and purpose of statistics. Attention to special problems of statistical design such as random assignment, single subject trials, and the ethics of control groups. Basic computer skills for manipulating data.
Attributes: Quantitative Reasoning(Disc)
Equivalent(s): HHS 540
Mutual Exclusion: No credit for students who have taken ADMN 420, ADMN 510, BIOL 528, EREC 525, MATH 439, MATH 539, MATH 644, PSYC 402, PSYC 402H, SOC 402, SOC 402H, SOC 502, SOC 502H.
Grade Mode: Letter Grading
View Course Learning Outcomes
- Understand fundamental statistical concepts applicable to allied health professions, including descriptive, comparative and predictive statistical analyses.
- Apply statistical methods to analyze healthcare data and research findings in allied health contexts.
- Gain proficiency in using Microsoft Excel for data analysis and data presentation.
- Interpret and critically evaluate statistical information presented in the literature.
- Develop problem-solving and critical thinking skills through practical applications of statistics.
HMP 610 - Survey of Health Information Systems
Credits: 2
This course introduces you to the nomenclature and foundations of health information technology and systems in health care delivery settings and the management and strategic uses for those systems. It is relevant for those studying health care management and individuals using or installing clinical health information systems. Time will be spent examining health care information flow, data capture, storage within information systems, technology standards, information security, and data usages both internally and externally.
Prerequisite(s): HMP 401 with a minimum grade of D-.
Equivalent(s): HMP 511, HMP 611
Grade Mode: Letter Grading
HMP 621 - Pre-practicum Seminar
Credits: 1-2
Preparation for field practicum experience, orientation to experiential learning and competency development.
Repeat Rule: May be repeated for a maximum of 2 credits. May be repeated up to 1 time.
Equivalent(s): HAP 621
Grade Mode: Letter Grading
HMP 622 - Field Practicum in Organizational and Project Analysis, and Management Skills Development
Credits: 3
Experiential learning in a health care organization; application of theories to practice. Planned learning objectives are accomplished through three distinct components. Organizational Analysis, Project Analysis and Management Skills Development, with Supervision by agency personnel. This will include analysis of assigned health care agency, from external and internal viewpoints, development of the basic quantitative and interpersonal skills required for a health services manager, and demonstration of knowledge and analysis of specific problem-solving skills. Students need a GPA of 3.0 or higher, and an approved practicum site.
Prerequisite(s): HMP 621 with a minimum grade of D-.
Equivalent(s): HAP 622, HMP 622A, HMP 622B, HMP 622C
Grade Mode: Credit/Fail Grading
HMP 624 - Post Practicum Seminar
Credits: 2
Summary of field practicum experience, and next steps. Individual analysis and panel discussions to include site assessment, project description, and methodologies employed, critique of individual skills, and knowledge base in relation to internship.
Prerequisite(s): HMP 621 with a minimum grade of D-.
Grade Mode: Letter Grading
HMP 631 - Health Issues Seminar
Credits: 2
Discussion of current issues in the fields of health management, health policy and public health.
Prerequisite(s): HMP 624 with a minimum grade of D- and HMP 712 with a minimum grade of D- and HMP 723 with a minimum grade of D- and HMP 735 with a minimum grade of D-.
Grade Mode: Letter Grading
HMP 635 - Healthcare Marketing
Credits: 4
Healthcare marketing builds upon competencies from previous courses, it covers foundational marketing principles, their application in healthcare administration, including marketing strategy, strengths and weakness evaluation, environmental forces, competitors, market size, customer/patient stratification and needs by defined groups, products and services, promotion, distribution, evaluation, and communication channels used to launch a targeted approach to different segmentations. Groups will choose a topic (new service, expansion or social marketing/public health topic) for full marketing launch presentations.
Prerequisite(s): HMP 401 with a minimum grade of D-.
Equivalent(s): HMP 735
Grade Mode: Letter Grading
HMP 642 - Health Economics
Credits: 4
This course in health economics introduces the tools of microeconomics to analyze various issues in health and healthcare. The first half of the course focuses on patient demand, and the second half focuses on provider supply. Topics covered in the former include the demand for health and healthcare, the demand for insurance, externalities associated with certain health behaviors, cost-effectiveness analyses, and health equity considerations. Topics covered in the latter half of the course include the role of nonprofits, provider agency, provider competition versus concentration, insurer behavior, and the effects of government regulation of insurance.
Prerequisite(s): HMP 401 with a minimum grade of D-.
Grade Mode: Letter Grading
HMP 669 - Human Behavior and the Public Health
Credits: 4
Provides a grounding in fundamental concepts of the behavioral sciences as they illuminate public health. Individual and community responses to prevention, identification of symptoms, diagnoses, treatments, chronic ailments, and rehabilitation are discussed. In each of these areas, the course explores the interaction between community, family, patient, and health care provider.
Prerequisite(s): HMP 403 with a minimum grade of D-.
Equivalent(s): HMP 569
Grade Mode: Letter Grading
HMP 702 - Programming in Healthcare Environments
Credits: 4
This course covers using Python as a programming language to write, implement, and design programs that are relevant to various aspects of programming in a health setting. After completion of this course, students should be comfortable with the basic data structures in Python and R (including arrays, dictionaries and dataframes), conditional logic and iterators, writing Python and R functions, and using Python libraries to read external data and perform data manipulations and data analysis.
Grade Mode: Letter Grading
HMP 703 - Translation of Health Data
Credits: 4
This course will give you the skills you need to leverage data to reveal valuable insights and advance your career. This course teaches you the visualization skills necessary to be effective Data Storytellers which helps engage your audience in a story about the data. This course focuses on concepts as well as handson experience of presenting data from initial concepts to final presentation by creating meaningful displays of quantitative and qualitative data to facilitate peer/managerial decision making.
Grade Mode: Letter Grading
HMP 711 - Introduction to Healthcare Operations Analytics
Credits: 4
Introduces intermediate techniques for data manipulation and analysis for the health care field. Also introduces methods for survey research and large data set manipulation and analysis. There is a lab section utilizing a statistical software package where students perform tasks from a large national data set.
Prerequisite(s): HMP 401 with a minimum grade of D-.
Grade Mode: Letter Grading
HMP 712 - Healthcare Operations Management
Credits: 4
This course introduces students to the field of health analytics and data science. It expands upon introductory statistical and data manipulation methods to include data mining, predictive analytics, cluster analysis, trend and pattern recognition, and data visualization. It couples data skills with interpretive and communication skills. Students will also be exposed to basic statistical programming. There will be a graduate component of the course (812) where students will work on advanced concepts and complete a separate culminating project.
Prerequisite(s): HMP 401 with a minimum grade of D- and HMP 711 with a minimum grade of D-.
Grade Mode: Letter Grading
HMP 715 - Environmental Health
Credits: 4
This course offers a general introduction to environmental health from the community, regional, and global perspective by addressing fundamental topics and current controversies such as air pollution, water pollution, built environment/urban sprawl, food safety, waste disposal, and occupational health. Students learn about environmental health assessment methods. Major issues in environmental health and related regulatory efforts and public health policy reform are examined.
Prerequisite(s): HMP 403 with a minimum grade of D-.
Grade Mode: Letter Grading
HMP 721 - Managing Health Care Organizations
Credits: 4
Organizational characteristics of ambulatory, acute, and long-term care facilities. Management issues and strategies involving governance, clinical services, human and fiscal resources, and community-based services.
Prerequisite(s): HMP 401 with a minimum grade of D-.
Equivalent(s): HAP 721
Grade Mode: Letter Grading
HMP 722 - Health Care Management II
Credits: 4
A continuation of HMP 721 - Managing Health Care Organizations with specific lectures and assignments devoted to organizational behavior, leadership, and managerial skills. Case studies and examples will relate specifically to health care organizations.
Prerequisite(s): HMP 721 with a minimum grade of D-.
Grade Mode: Letter Grading
HMP 723 - Health Planning
Credits: 4
Theoretical and historical foundations of health planning; the relationship of health planning and regulation; the application of planning methods; and the utilization of strategic planning and its relationships to marketing.
Equivalent(s): HAP 723
Grade Mode: Letter Grading
HMP 740 - Health Care Financial Management
Credits: 4
Techniques, principles, and practices of managing fiscal aspects of health care organizations. Exploration of concepts and techniques associated with variance analysis, cost allocation, management of working capital, and capital decision analysis. Analysis of the impact of reimbursement on health care organizations.
Prerequisite(s): HMP 401 with a minimum grade of D-.
Equivalent(s): HLTC 627
Grade Mode: Letter Grading
HMP 741 - Health Care Financial Management II
Credits: 4
This course focuses on issues related to effective financial management of health care organizations and programs, building upon material covered in HMP 740, Health Care Financial Management. Topics include the time value of money, long-term debt, stocks and equity, and evaluation of capital projects.
Prerequisite(s): HMP 740 with a minimum grade of D-.
Equivalent(s): HLTC 627
Grade Mode: Letter Grading
Special Fee: Yes
HMP 742 - Strategic Management for Health Care Organizations
Credits: 4
Application of managerial methods involving financial, marketing, and operational analysis to health management. Case studies.
Attributes: Writing Intensive Course
Prerequisite(s): HMP 721 with a minimum grade of D- and HMP 740 with a minimum grade of D-.
Equivalent(s): HAP 742
Grade Mode: Letter Grading
HMP 744 - Law and Ethics in Healthcare
Credits: 4
Ethical theories, core legal principles and cases, and decision-making models; patient's rights and professional responsibilities; social justice and resource allocation; critical ethical dilemma's facing health care managers, policy makers, and executives; managerial versus medical care conflicts.
Prerequisite(s): HMP 401 with a minimum grade of D- or HMP 403 with a minimum grade of D-.
Equivalent(s): HLTC 690
Grade Mode: Letter Grading
HMP 746 - Health Policy
Credits: 4
Analysis of the public policy process, the development of health policies in the U.S., and discussion of specific health policy issues.
Attributes: Writing Intensive Course
Prerequisite(s): HMP 401 with a minimum grade of D- or HMP 403 with a minimum grade of D-.
Equivalent(s): HLTC 738
Grade Mode: Letter Grading
HMP 749 - Public Health Capstone: Integrative Experience
Credits: 4
The Capstone course is the culminating experience for students in the Bachelor of Public Health (BPH) program. This course integrates knowledge and skills acquired throughout the program, allowing students to apply public health theories, methods, and practices to real-world public health problems. Students will work on a community-based project, research paper, or case study to demonstrate their competencies in public health practice, research, and policy development.
Grade Mode: Letter Grading
View Course Learning Outcomes
- Synthesize public health knowledge, skills, and values to address complex public health issues.
- Apply public health theories and methodologies to design and implement a public health project.
- Demonstrate teamwork and communication skills in collaboration with stakeholders and peers.
- Evaluate public health outcomes and suggest interventions for improvement.
- Prepare a comprehensive written report and oral presentation to communicate public health findings effectively.
HMP 796 - Independent Study
Credits: 1-4
In-depth study with faculty supervision.
Repeat Rule: May be repeated for a maximum of 12 credits.
Grade Mode: Letter Grading
HMP 798H - Honors Project/Research Design
Credits: 2
Examines selected research designs and methods used in health services research/program evaluation. Establishes theoretical and methodological foundation for honors-in-major research project to be conducted during the subsequent semester under a faculty member's supervision.
Attributes: Honors course
Grade Mode: Letter Grading
HMP 799H - Honors Project/Research
Credits: 2-4
In-depth research project (conducting and analysis) under supervision of faculty member. Includes scholarly presentation of findings to faculty and other interested parties and preparation of manuscript suitable for publication in peer-viewed journal.
Attributes: Honors course; Writing Intensive Course
Prerequisite(s): HMP 798H with a minimum grade of D-.
Grade Mode: Letter Grading