Health
services research is a multi-disciplinary field of inquiry, both basic
and applied, that examines the use, costs, quality, accessibility,
delivery, organization, financing and outcomes of health care services
to increase knowledge and understanding of the structures, processes
and effects of health services for individuals and populations. As
public health professionals, health services researchers and policy
researchers use a systems approach to understanding health of
populations that is consistent with the ecological model determinants
of health.
For more information, the National Library of Medicine has produced a useful overview of the field.
Students
in the Doctoral program in HSRP will have the opportunity to conduct
focused and directed research with faculty working in the areas of
long-term care, pharmaceutical economics, behavioral economics, quality
improvement, organizational theory, and health policy. Each student
will identify an area of focus that informs the substance and provides
the theoretical framework for their research.
This
new Ph.D. program will provide graduates with contemporary training in
research design and methods appropriate for studying the health care
system, experience in developing an NIH style grant proposal, and
experience in writing for publication and presenting results at a
scientific meeting, and teaching.
Upon completing
the program, graduates will be prepared for positions in academia,
government or the private sector as experts in health services research
and policy.