HS 375 - Managing Healthcare Provider Organizations

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Course Structure

Course Description

This course is designed to introduce Healthcare Administration majors to the specific issues and body of knowledge pertaining to the management of: hospitals, specialty hospitals, ambulatory surgery centers, medical group practices, and long-term care facilities. Emphasis is placed on guest lectures by professionals from each of these types of provider organizations.

Course Focuses

Hospitals: Free-standing and/or part of a system

Specialty Hospitals: Free-standing and/or part of a system

Ambulatory Surgery Centers: Free-standing and/or part of a system

Long-Term Care Facilities: Free-standing and/or part of a system

Medical Group Practices: Free-standing and/or part of a system

Urgent Care Clinics: Retail Health Clinics

Rehabilitation Facilities:

Hospice Care Organizations:

Course Learning Objectives

1. Introduce students to the various types of healthcare provider organizations that comprise the private segment of the healthcare industry. Students will clearly understand the different operational and organizational demands that are inherent in each type of provider facility. (See list above.) This course, as a follow-up to HS 285, will assist students in the formulation of their career choices.
2. Students will understand the organizational structure of each type of provider organization.
3. Students will learn the distinction between the roles of governance, senior executive management, day-to-day operations management, and human resource management in each type of provider organization.
4. Students will learn to use the operating budget, the use and interpretation of operating statements, and their application in each of the types of provider organizations. They will be introduced to the concept of dashboard indicators, benchmarks, and operating performance indicators.
5. Students will be introduced to the professional and advocacy organizations that represent each type of provider organizations and/or healthcare professionals who manage these organizations.
6. Students will be organized into groups and will research and present a major project to their peers on a variety of healthcare provider organizations. These compositions will help the students to solidify their learning about healthcare provider organizations, and give them an opportunity to fulfill the "Teach One Another" component of the BYU-Idaho Learning Model.
7. Students will be tested to ascertain the level of their understanding of the healthcare provider organizations discussed in the course.
8. Upon completion, students will have a clearer sense of which segment of the healthcare industry they'd like to focus their careers on.

Learning Model Architecture

The course follows a weekly cycle of Prepare, Teach One Another, and Ponder & Prove activities.

Prepare

You will prepare by completing readings and coursework.

Teach One Another

You will teach one another through discussion board interactions focused on case studies, documents provided via I-Learn, and specific assignments from your instructor. You will also have collaborative assignments to work with and teach others and share experiences with the class.

Ponder & Prove

You will demonstrate your skills by completing interactive activities, assignments, research projects, reports, and assessments (quizzes).

Course Mechanics

The curriculum is divided into eight lessons, including six separate modules - one module for each type of provider organization:

• Ambulatory Service Centers
• Acute Care Hospitals
• Medical Group Practices
• Long Term Care Facilities
• Rehabilitation Facilities
• Hospice and Palliative Care Organizations

Given that there are twelve weeks of instruction, each lesson will last approximately two and a half weeks. No attempt is made to make each lesson conform to a proscribed size.

At the beginning of each semester, each student will be assigned to a presentation group. Each group will research, write, and submit/present a project to their peers on one of the six types of provider organizations (see above). The format of this presentation will be Microsoft PowerPoint (or another compatible multi-media format that can be presented to the class as a whole), and coordinated with the syllabus to coincide with the conclusion of each module. The paper will consist of a thorough summary of each type of provider organization*, including (but not limited to):

• Historical perspective (pertinent chronological events and developments)
• Organizational structure (for-profit vs. not-for-profit, financial/reimbursement issues)
• Principal managerial challenges
• Medical, legal, ethical issues peculiar to each type of facility
• Description of the relative size (number of facilities) and complexity of each type of organization compared to the industry as a whole
• Conclusions and "anticipations" (what you predict you'll experience as an administrator in each type of facility)
• Input from a contact (Find at least one administrator or manager from the type of organization the presentation is focused on and include their knowledge and experience.)

*A content outline for each module is included in I-Learn. This content outline provides the minimum content requirements for each module.

Course Overview

Course Expectations

• Most weeks are comprised of activities, assignments, and a quiz. Discussion boards are spread throughout the course but not necessarily assigned every week.
• • Discussion boards are opportunities to teach one another.
  • Participation is important - not only for you, but for your classmates as well.
• Activities give you the opportunity to learn by practice and to perfect your abilities and skills. They can be attempted multiple times to master a concept. See each assignment for the amount of attempts allowed.
• Assignments are different from activities because they will be personally graded by the instructor. Assignments allow you to ponder what you have learned and prove that you know the materials.
• Quizzes are taken at the end of every week or module, depending on the syllabus. They require you to use their skills in a practical way to demonstrate that you know certain aspects of the subject.
• Late work will generally not be accepted. You are expected to complete your assignments on time. Contact your instructor for additional questions or concerns.
• The course is not an independent study course. The group teaching and learning activities require you to cover material at the same time and pace as others in the group.
• There will be a final exam focused on the most important information you should take from this course. it will be worth 200 points.

Writing Requirements

In this course, you will be required to write papers as part of certain assignments. Follow the instructions carefully to write a professional, college-level paper. Make sure that your paper is focused on the topic chosen. Be concise and clear. Rambling will not be accepted for full credit. Do not attempt to “pad” your responses by being wordy. Your papers should be well-organized, using paragraphs with correct spelling and punctuation standards.

To learn more about writing standards, visit the BYU-Idaho Writing Center website for tutorials and handouts. Tutoring sessions are also available to students in the Writing Center on-campus or online via Skype. If your schedule does not coincide with the Writing Center hours (9:00am–5:30pm Monday–Friday), you may email your paper to writingcenter@byui.edu and receive written feedback for your paper within 48 hours. Visit the Help for Online Students page for more details on these resources.

Remember, it is your responsibility to understand and follow the instructions completely! If you have a question regarding an assignment, ask your instructor early for clarification. Last minute questions may not be answered immediately.

Each student will research, write, and submit two papers on two of the six types of provider organizations. Each paper will consist of a thorough summary of each type of facility, including (but not limited to):

• Historical perspective (pertinent chronological events and developments)
• Organizational structure (for-profit vs. not-for-profit, financial/reimbursement issues)
• Principal managerial challenges
• Medical, legal, ethical issues peculiar to each type of facility
• Description of the relative size (number of facilities) and complexity of each type of organization compared to the industry as a whole
• Conclusions and “anticipations” (what you predict you'll experience as an administrator in each type of facility)

Each paper will be worth 100 points.

COURSE REQUIREMENTS

Course Texts and Materials

All necessary materials will be provided for you. You will not need to purchase any textbooks or materials for this course.

Weekly Time Commitment

The online class policy is that for every credit hour, you should expect to spend 3 hours of work per week. For this class, you should plan on spending approximately 9 hours per week.

GRADING POLICIES

This course is comprised of readings, activities, assignments, assessments (quizzes), and a final exam.

Grading Scale

A 93%–100%	A- 90%–92%	B+ 87%–89%	B 83%–86%
B- 80%–82%	C+ 77%–79%	C 73%–76%	C- 70%–72%
D+ 67%–69%	D 63%–66%	D- 60%–62%	F below 60%

Final Exam

Explanation: The policy for this course is that students will take all quizzes and/or exams without accessing any outside sources, books, documents, on-line aids, friends, etc. while taking the exam. This is an honor code issue which we take very seriously. This course has a comprehensive final exam.

Points for Final: 200

Overall percentage of grade: 20.3%

Group Presentation

Explanation: Each student will be assigned to a presentation group early in the semester. Each group will research, write, and submit/present a project to their peers on one of the six types of provider organizations. Students in each report group will evaluate other members of their group. The instructor reserves the right to lower grade points for group members who are perceived by their peers to have contributed less than others. Do not be lazy in your contributions to this group project.

Points for each: 200

Overall percentage of grade: 15.52%

Minor Papers

Explanation: Each student will research, write, and submit two papers on two of the six types of provider organizations.

Points for each: 100

Overall percentage of grade: 9.7%

Module Exams

Explanation: There will be an exam at the conclusion of each module. They may include documents, lectures, discussions, and presentations on the type of provider organization covered in that module. There will be a total of six module exams.

Points for each: 20

Overall percentage of grade: 25.15% (Comprising six Module Exams)

Quizzes

Explanation: There will be a brief quiz on each of the major documents discussed during the semester.

Points for each: 10

Overall percentage of grade: 21.33% (consisting of nine quizzes with varying point values)

Discussion Boards

Explanation: You will have the opportunity to discuss your thoughts and insights with your fellow classmates regarding specific topics.

Points for each: 10

Overall percentage of grade: 8%

RESOURCES

If any technical difficulties arise throughout the course, contact the Online Support Center or the Help Desk before contacting the instructor.

Online Support Center

Phone: (208) 496-1411

Email: onlinelearning@byui.edu

Website: http://www.byui.edu/online/online-support-center

Text Messaging: (855) 808-7102

Hours: Monday–Friday, 7 AM–7 PM MT

Skype: onlinesupportcenterbyui

Live Chat: Available on the Online Support Center Website.

Help Desk

Phone: (208) 496-1411

Email: helpdesk@byui.edu

Website: http://www.byui.edu/help-desk

Hours: Monday–Friday, 7 AM–9 PM MT; Saturday, 9 AM–5 PM MT

Copyright

Materials on BYU-I I-Learn and related sites may be protected by US Copyright Law (Title 17, U.S. Code). These materials are only for the use of students enrolled in this course for purposes associated with this course and may not be retained or further disseminated.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

University Policies

Academic honesty is required and any violation will be dealt with according to the University Academic Honesty Policy.

Policy on Sexual Discrimination/Harassment

Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 prohibits sex discrimination against any participant in an education program or activity that receives federal funds, including federal loans and grants. Title IX also covers student-to-student sexual harassment. If you encounter unlawful sexual harassment or gender-based discrimination, please contact the Personnel Office at (208) 496-1130.

Reasonable Accommodation for Students with Disabilities

Brigham Young University–Idaho is committed to providing a working and learning atmosphere, which reasonably accommodates qualified persons with disabilities. If you have any disability that may impair your ability to complete this course successfully, please contact the Services for Students with Disabilities Office, (208) 496-1158. Reasonable academic accommodations are reviewed for all students who have qualified documented disabilities. Services are coordinated with the student and instructor by this office. If you need assistance or if you feel you have been unlawfully discriminated against on the basis of disability, you may seek resolution through established grievance policy and procedures. You should contact the Personnel Office at (208) 496-1130.

Personal Conduct

All of your correspondence with the teacher or other classmates must be respectful. Writing something disrespectful or “venting” is unprofessional and not becoming of a university student. In addition, it is not in accordance with the Honor Code of BYU–Idaho and you will be subject to discipline accordingly. You are invited to re-read the BYU–I Honor Code and the “Principles of Personal Honor."

International Students

The BYU Idaho Healthcare Administration Program (Bachelor of Science degree) is based on the U.S. healthcare system, with all of its focus on provider organizations, insurance plans and providers, the U.S. legal system, and the uniquely "American" system of reimbursement. With that in mind, we counsel international students who do not plan to actually spend their careers in the United States not to declare a healthcare administration major unless you have a particular reason for doing so. We invite you to counsel with us about your decision.