Overview of Field Studies in Health Policy & Management

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Table of Contents:

1. Introduction
2. Student Field Studies Requirements
3. Student Goals
4. Organizational Benefits
5. Developing an Appropriate Placement
6. The Role of the Preceptor & the Organization
7. The Role of the Student
8. The Role of the Health Services Department
9. Compensation
10. Placement Timeline
11. Student-Organization Match
12. Network Organizations
13. Contact Information
    

1. Introduction
The UCLA MPH Program in Health Policy and Management prepares the student for positions in a rapidly changing health care arena by integrating a strong foundation of health care management and policy analysis with the social values and orientation of access and equity in an efficiently managed health delivery system. Our program stresses that to effectively navigate organizations through the turbulent environment of the health care delivery system, managers require a knowledge of the macro-political environment in which they operate, the implications of legislation that affects their organizations, and the skills and techniques of micro-level organizational management. In like manner, individuals assuming a career in policy analysis are likely to need management skills, as they become leaders in their field. Hence, our program instills the students with a solid grounding in health services delivery and management, a strong wrap around health context, and a keen public health ethic so that they can act on their inherent idealism in productive and creative ways to the benefit of society.

Upon graduation, our students are prepared for careers in:

Accountability
Change Leadership
Collaboration             
Communication Skills 
Impact and Influence 
Information Tech Mgmt 
Initiative              
Organizational Awareness 
Performance Measurement 
Process Management/Organization Design 
Project Management

Human Resources Mgmt.
Interpersonal Understanding 
Professionalism 
Relationship Building
Self-Confidence
Self-Development
Talent Development
Team Leadership

2. Student Field Studies Requirements
All students registered in the Master of Public Health Program in Policy and Management are required to complete a 10 week, 400 hour full-time summer internship in an appropriate health care setting and to write a project paper focused on an operational problem or decision identified during the summer placement. This might be any organizational issue, process management initiative, policy white paper, research project, strategic, program or business plan, or any of a number of analyses. Health care settings may include hospitals, managed care organizations, medical groups, government agencies or departments, consulting firms, community organizations, advocacy agencies, or related health settings. Students may work part-time after completing their summer requirement.

In the Fall Quarter following the internship, the student enrolls in our Field Studies course, the product of which is the Master's Consulting Report based on the summer experience. At the end of the quarter, you will receive the completed report from us.

3. Student Goals

Field Study is the major opportunity students have to integrate classroom and academic learning with the practice setting prior to graduation. The main benefits are to:

o Experience management or policy analysis in a health care work setting;
o Apply classroom theory, knowledge, skills & techniques to professional work;
o Learn organizational dynamics;
o Polish and enhance management, planning and policy analysis skills;
o Develop a professional persona;
o Provide the student an opportunity to explore a particular health care setting as it might relate to future career decisions.

4. Organizational Benefits
Having a student professional in residence bestows many benefits upon the organization. Some of the most frequently mentioned include:

5. Developing an Appropriate Placement

Each student and assignment is individual. Each relationship between the student and the preceptor is unique. Flexibility is important. Students and projects vary as to required supervision. One student may have a major project within one Department of the organization while another student may have several smaller projects from a variety of organizational sub-units. Some placements are predetermined and require the student to fit into the specified conditions. Other placements are flexible and built around the students' specific skills and interests. The work should be flexible enough that the student can be exposed to a variety of meetings and decision-making at all levels of the organization. Regardless of the nature of the placement, the students' work should be valued by the organization and make a contribution to meeting the organization's goals or mission.

The diversity of student background permits a variety of projects in which students can participate. Examples of recent student projects include:

o A managed care integration training program for physicians;
o Clinical Reminders for Nurses and Physicians Treating Cancer
o Assessment of Quality of Care at Bay Cities Assisted Living Facility;
o Workflow System Implementation at Valley's Healthcare Management Consulting;
o Medical Staff development plan for a community medical center;
o Developing an disaster alternative care site for an academic medical center;
o Evaluating the purchase of 3rd party excess loss insurance and managing financial risk;
o Developing Policy and Program Recommendations for Childhood Obesity Prevention;
o Hospital cost control analysis
o Preliminary feasibility study for a diabetes management center at an urban Medical Center;
o Marketing analysis of the Chinese community use of health services;
o Measurement tools for a physician incentive program in a managed care organization;
o Patient flow analysis of same day surgery unit;
o Needs assessment of under-served populations for maternal and child health care services;
o Improving Data Collection Process for HIV Disclosure Services
o Patient satisfaction evaluation;
o Restrictive Formulary System Evaluation;
o Strategic plan for hospital technology assessment and acquisition;
o Development of a business continuity plan for National American HMO;
o Competitive Intelligence Processes for Hospital Strategic Planners;
o VA Office of Asset Management: Developing a Business Plan.

6. The Role of the Preceptor & the Organization

The Field Program introduces the student to a high level of professional skill and expertise in the health industry. In this manner, students develop their potential. To accomplish this, the Department considers the following when selecting preceptors and placement sites:

o A health services or related graduate degree or equivalent combination of degree and experience;
o An interest in and willingness to foster the student's learning experience;
o Opportunities for the student to be exposed to a variety of organizational departments, individuals, functions and tasks;
o Student accessibility to the preceptor through a commitment to meeting with the student on a regular weekly basis to discuss and critique the student's work and progress;
o Centrality of the task to the institution and evolving health care industry;
o Adequate financial and organizational support.

The Department of Health Services expects preceptors to provide supervision for the student and to assign tasks that meet not only the agency's needs but opportunities for the student's personal and professional growth as well. Organizations are expected to provide access for students to any data required conducting their projects. The preceptor is responsible for completing any written evaluations of the student and project.

7. The Role of the Student
In return for the commitment of the organization, the student also has a responsibility to the organization as well as to his or her own learning. The Department of Health Services expects students to act as developing professionals by:

o Participating in setting goals for their own learning;
o Fulfilling the requirement of a full-time position for a minimum of 10 weeks;
o Behaving in an ethically and morally professional manner;
o Performing professional quality work;
o Conducting themselves consistent with the values of the organization;
o Completing academic work and assigned papers relating to the Field Placement.

8. The Role of the Health Services Department
The Department values it relationship with professional organizations in the health care community. We anticipate the student will behave in a manner that will contribute to nurturing these relationships.
The program is responsible for the students and will be evaluating their progress and achievement. The Department works closely with the student and the preceptor in the development of the student's Field Study Project. Program Faculty will be available to discuss and consult with students or preceptors on any concerns regarding the placement. The Program Director makes site visits as needed to placements in regional Los Angeles. Site visits allow the preceptor, the student and the Program Director to share progress on the Field Study report, to assess the value of the organization's placement, evaluate the value of the student's placement, and solidify the relationship of the preceptor organization and UCLA.

9. Compensation
A long-standing tradition is that interns in professional programs be remunerated as developing professionals. Historical precedent guides compensation levels. Occasionally, private community based agencies and public sector organizations cannot afford minimum student wages. Students may accept a small stipend or smaller salary if they anticipate the quality of the projects on which they work will provide them with exceptional professional development.

10. Placement Timeline
The Internship timeline loosely follows the major milestones identified here.

This process is designed to permit sufficient time for students and organizations to identify a good fit and to reduce anxiety. The earlier a site notifies the Program about a potential project or opportunity, the more likely it will be to interview appropriate candidates. Students are anxious to finalize their summer plans early and many will have accepted offers by April or early May.

11. Student-Organization Match
Site selection may be either through student identification of the site and self-initiative or by utilizing the Program's organizational network. The Program helps direct students to appropriate sites and opportunities depending on their stated skills inventory and interests. Organizations interested in a student can provide information for our database of internship opportunities. Students interview competitively for these positions. Students may also identify their own opportunities. These must be approved by the Program Director before the internship begins.

Working students occasionally use their existing sites for the internship if the organization is a health care related facility. In such a circumstance, the student must provide a two page description of the proposed internship task, job or duties specifying those new skills and knowledge obtained during the first year in the HPM Program.

Most students interview with several potential sites. Likewise, most organizations interview several students. This provides both the student and the preceptor organization an opportunity to assess the fit. The match of student and site is, in the final analysis, a decision between the student and the site with the approval of the Program Director.

12. Network Organizations
Selected organizations that have recently provided field study sites include:

o Alameda Alliance for Health
o Blue Shield of California
o CalOptima of Orange County
o Cedars-Sinai Outpatient Cancer Center
o Cedars-Sinai Health System, Los Angeles, CA
o Centers for Disease Control, Washington, DC
o Cerner Health Insights
o Children's Hospital Los Angeles
o City of Long Beach, Department of Health and Human Services
o COPE Health Solutions
o Huntington Memorial Hospital and Medical Foundation, Pasadena, CA
o Kaiser Foundation Hospital, Los Angeles
o Los Angeles County Department of Health Services
o Meridian Health Care Management
o PricewaterhouseCoopers, LLP
o Santa Monica-UCLA Medical Center, Santa Monica, CA
o Sinaiko Healthcare Consulting
o Southern California Permanente Medical Group, Pasadena, CA
o The Rand Corporation, Santa Monica, CA
o UCLA Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA
o USC University Hospital
o VA Greater Los Angeles Healthcare System
o Venice Family Clinic, Venice, CA
o Wellpoint State Sponsored Programs, Camarillo, CA
o World Health Organization, Geneva, Switzerland

13. For More Information, contact...
Diana W. Hilberman, MPH, DrPH
Director, MPH Programs in Health Policy and Management
Department of Health Services, CHS 31-253C
UCLA School of Public Health
PO Box 951772
Los Angeles, CA 90095-1772
(310) 206-6322
FAX: (310) 825-3317
Email: hilberma@ucla.edu

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