HSM for Executive MBAs and Alumni

HSM Requirements

1. Health Institutions, Systems, and Policy (HSM Bootcamp) (2 credits)

Introduces Health Sector Management students to the interlocking segments of the industry (for example, doctors, hospitals, HMOs/PPOs, insurers, consultants, pharmaceuticals, and medical devices), their current status, and how they are changing. It will analyze the Health Care Industry from a historical perspective to understand how the industry has evolved to its current state and to predict where it is likely to go in the future. To better understand the current health care environment, the course will explore the industry from several perspectives: the provider/patient/payor interface, the changing demographics of health, the growth of technology, emerging regulatory patterns, and comparative strategies of public health across nations. This class includes Daytime and EMBA HSM students.  Executive MBA students have the option to attend in residency or a distance format.

Dates: Generally scheduled for the 3rd or 4th week of July.  Current dates are >  July 21, 2024 – July 25, 2024

2. Fundamentals of Health Sector Management:  A Global Perspective (HSM Seminar) (3 credits)

This course provides an overview of the global health sector to help create a context for other health sector management courses and to form the foundation for overall discussions of health management. It will address current business and policy challenges in health sector management. The course addresses key challenges in the value chain by which people and organizations around the world create, deliver, and consume healthcare goods and services.

Class meets six (6) virtual sessions on Sunday mornings (February 2024 -August 2024) concluding with a half-day, in-person conference that coincides with the start of the elective term.

3. Three (3) HSM Elective Courses (9 credits)

  • Industry Context Electives – Students must take two Industry Context electives, and one Breadth elective to fulfill the remaining HSM Certificate requirement. Industry Context electives include:
    1. HLTHMGMT 711E – Health Care Markets
    2. HLTHMGMT 718E – Life Science Strategy
  • Breadth Electives – Students must take one Breadth elective course. Breadth electives include, but are not limited to the list below. Note that only a subset of the courses below will be offered in any specific EMBA elective term.
    • HLTHMGMT 716 Management of Health Systems and Policy (Week in DC)
    • FINANCE 646E Corporate Finance
    • MANAGEMT 745E Negotiation
    • MARKETNG 796E Market Intelligence
    • MARKETNG 807E Marketing Strategy
    • MARKETNG 808E Strategy and Tactics of Pricing
    • STRATEGY 840E Emerging Markets Strategy
    • STRATEGY 838E Entrepreneurial Strategy for Innovation-Based Ventures

Register for elective classes in DukeHub.  Elective classes can only be taken during Elective Term 1 and Elective Term 2.

4. HSM Project Course (3 credits)

The HSM Project Course is designed for students to extend their mastery in one or more business skills by completing an in-depth analysis of a health care management or policy challenge or opportunity and developing actionable recommendations concerning the identified topic. To accomplish this goal, students will select the topic and organization providing the context for the project, develop a proposal describing the project, work with a project advisor to refine the project focus/scope and work plan, as required, and then carry out the research and other steps required to complete the analyses. Faculty supervision for the project will include online, in-person, and/or phone sessions.

The Project Course is conducted immediately following successful completion of MBA and HSM coursework.

January 2024  – April 2024

HSM Courses

academics page bootcamp course

Health Institutions, Systems & Policy (HSM Bootcamp)

In this intensive bootcamp, students will become familiar with how health care regulations around the world interact with companies in the health sector, including how governments are involved in the functioning and financing of these different companies. Students will also examine more closely the primary commercial segments of the industry including pharmaceutical companies, biotechnology, long-term care facilities, and health IT. This study of the industry will be accompanied by a discussion of the history of the industry, how it has evolved to its current state, and how people can shape the future of health care through the topic of the uninsured, health care reform, and delivery systems. The week will integrate guest lecturers from Duke, as well as the business and policy world. This course provides students with a foundation in the structure and function of health care systems and the framework to build upon their specific goals and interests in the field.

academics page hsm seminar

Fundamentals of Health Sector Management  (HSM Seminar)

The HSM Seminar course examines the challenges of rising health care costs in both developing and developed countries, with both nationalized and private health insurance. Students will explore the various ways governments and industries around the world are working to control spending. The course will also cover how financing and organization of health care delivery can affect health care costs and provide an understanding of the sector’s complex institutional environments. This includes the structure of health care providers, regulators, payors, and product markets. HSM Seminar will provide students an opportunity to engage in issues and readings that address broad contemporary challenges to the health sector. Students are expected to participate in discussion.

academics page health care markets

Health Care Markets

Health Care Markets uses tools from business and the social sciences to examine challenges faced by managers, patients, and policy makers in the health sector. The course aims for broad coverage of health care, including manufacturers and providers, but pays special attention to payers. Weekly topics will include demand for and supply of health insurance, cost effectiveness of a medical intervention, health information technology, innovation and competition for medical products, and hospital leadership and competition. The class is both for those who have a deep knowledge of the health sector, as well as those who are new and willing to work hard and learn. Lively discussion and a diversity of perspectives are highly encouraged.

academics page provider strategy

Health Care Provider Strategy

Health Care Provider Strategy  provides an inside look into the health care provider space. Students will grow their strategic and operational thinking skills and ability to persuasively communicate analyses and recommendations. This course will explore how providers address a rising demand, complexity, and supplier cost, while still balancing providing high quality, profitable services. The class will incorporate guest lecturers from industry, focused case studies, and a team-based analysis of challenges facing today’s current provider organizations.

academics page life science strategy

Life Science Strategy

This course examines product strategy in the biotech, device, and pharmaceutical industries. Case studies include entrepreneurial start-ups, large incumbents, and companies in between. Life science product companies face new challenges and opportunities. Emerging markets are growing rapidly. Developed markets have changes in regulatory oversight and reimbursement, including emphasis on evidence-based medicine. Patient populations are shrinking as diagnostics become better able to identify which patients respond best to which medicines. Companies are moving beyond the blockbuster and some are focusing on rare diseases. Many of the tools for business education are useful in the life science product market. To succeed, industry professionals need a deep understanding of corporate strategy, financing options, product development and innovation management, marketing, and customer needs. However, there are also important differences in regulation and reimbursement of health care. For example, in this course, students will use tools from economics and marketing to understand pricing, with the caveat that often insurers are paying the bills.

academics page WIDC

Health Systems & Policy (Week in DC)

Health Systems and Policy (Week in DC) provides students with an understanding of the business interrelationship between public and private sectors in one of the most dynamic and highly regulated industries. Students learn about current issues in health policy including health care reform, the role of private insurers in the new marketplace, and more. The class culminates in a trip to Washington, DC to hear from speakers who are key stakeholders in the US health care system from all branches of the US government, as well as consulting and advisory groups, business leaders, and lobbying firms. The week spent in DC gives students a real-world perspective as they examine the institutions critical to health policy and health care delivery.

Fuqua Client Consulting Practicum

The Fuqua Client Consulting Practicum (FCCP). enhances students’ business education by developing collaborative consulting engagements with businesses and nonprofit organizations in which students assist their client organizations in addressing existing and emerging challenges. FCCP offers customized consulting assistance to a diverse array of organizations. Clients have varied from small, local business and nonprofit organizations to global corporations to social entrepreneurs in developing markets. Examples of health care projects include recommending a market entry strategy into a Latin American country for a pharmaceutical consulting firm and analyzing and recommending improvements to the patient acquisition process for a physician clinic. Engagements have been structured to include student team travel to locations within the US and internationally. View more past HSM projects here.

academics page hsm project course

HSM Project Course

In this course, students apply their business skills to the analysis of a health care management or policy challenge. The project will include the selection of an organization, the development of a proposal describing the project, and the subsequent research to complete the analysis. To finalize the project, students will write up their analyses, findings and implementation steps. Students will be assisted by a project mentor and course faculty.