Department of Health Policy and Management (HPMG)
Welcome Message from the Department Chair
Welcome to Health Policy and Management Department,
Our healthcare systems face unprecedented challenges as we continue to grapple with two pandemics converging: COVID-19 and the reckoning with racial injustice. Now more than ever, a diverse and interdisciplinary workforce is needed to galvanize our commitments to health equity and evidence-based practice. In response, our Health Policy and Management Department provides a world-class training program to equip the next generation of healthcare leaders with the skills necessary to bring evidence-informed and community-engaged solutions to healthcare systems. Whether in scholarship, teaching, or service, our Department is grounded in a shared commitment to advance social justice. Located both on our main campus in Brooklyn and our recently launched extension site in Bryant Park, our Department fulfills this mission by conducting cutting-edge scholarships as well as providing multiple academic programs, including an MPH Concentration in Health Policy and Management (HPMG) and both an MPH In Healthcare Administration (HCAD) and a Masters of Healthcare Administration (beginning In Fall 2023).
Students in the MPH program in HPMG are equipped with the skills needed to develop and implement healthcare policies, conduct policy analyses, and work in governmental, healthcare, and public health sectors. In the HPMG concentration, coursework is designed to provide the foundational skills necessary for students to engage the scientific evidence and expertise required to develop, implement, and improve health policies and management strategies. By doing so, our Health Policy and Management concentration equips students to create and advocate for evidence-informed policies.
Our Department is also in a growth phase, evolving to meet the challenges confronting our nation’s healthcare systems. Launched in Fall 2022, the MPH Concentration in HCAD provides students the training required to lead and manage in the public health sector during this time of extraordinary change. Our coursework is grounded in the foundational understanding of public health and then supplemented with training in areas central to leading and management, including administration, finance and reimbursement, quality improvement, and strategic marketing. Beginning in Fall 2023, the Department will expand to include a Masters of Healthcare Administration offered at our Brooklyn campus and Manhattan extension site. Students in our MHA program will gain the skills needed to emerge as leaders across an array of healthcare settings.
Our faculty is nationally prominent in three arenas: health policy, system-level interventions, and healthcare management. Drawn from across the Downstate Health Sciences University, our interdisciplinary faculty brings expertise in the clinical sciences, health services research, political science, medical sociology, and healthcare management. Our faculty routinely engage patients, providers, and policymakers as partners in planning, implementing, disseminating, and translating research studies. Our faculty’s scholarship has received the support of the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI), the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), W.T. Grant Foundation, among others. Faculty in our department are also regional and national leaders in healthcare administration and management. Therefore, our interdisciplinary faculty brings expertise and experiences both as researchers and practitioners into the classroom.
HPMG notably reflects the values of our School of Public Health and the SUNY Downstate community more broadly. We are deeply committed to building the partnerships necessary to move evidence into action in efforts to advance health equity. We aspire for the work of our faculty, staff, and students to bring innovative and evidence-informed solutions to our communities here in Brooklyn and beyond.
Sincerely,
Thomas I. Mackie, PhD, MPH
Student Project Examples
- The Impact of COVID-19 on Black Maternal Health Outcomes in the United States: A Literature Review
- Investigating Solutions to Physician Burnout amidst the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Policy Analysis
- The Role of Medicaid Expansion in Reducing Maternal Mortality: A Literature Review
- Structural Interventions to Improve Pathways for Women to Healthcare Leadership: A Policy Analysis
- Factors Influential to the Increased Risk for Breast Cancer Mortality among African American Women in the United States: A Literature Review
- Healthcare Coverage for the Undocumented Immigrant Population in New York State: A Policy Analysis
- Taking Federal Action to Protect Trans Health: A Policy Analysis
- Mental Health Inequities and Cultural Barriers to Care for American Arab, Middle Eastern Muslim and South Asian (AMEMSA) Refugee and Immigrant Populations: A Literature Review