MS in HSRP&A (Policy & Research)
The MS in HSRP&A Policy and Research program prepares you for careers translating health related data into organizational intelligence that improves individual health, population health, and organizational performance.
Organizations are being flooded with data and are seeking to translate it into organizational intelligence that can help improve performance (see The Age of Big Data by Steve Lohr, NY Times, February 11, 2012). Health care organizations use information to help clinicians improve care by providing tools to measure patient outcomes and alert providers to patient needs. Employers are using information to improve health and wellness programs for their employees. Translating huge amounts of raw data into organizational intelligence requires analysts who are skilled in analyzing data to address organizational questions such as what works for whom when where and why? This career opportunity is a growing area and it will be difficult to outsource because it requires being a liaison between users and informatics – helping users frame and answer their questions using their organization’s data.
The MS in HSRP&A trains you to create organizational intelligence by applying analytic skills to large data sets to help users, clinicians and executives, answer their questions. Rather than being a purely technical back-office job, careers in MS in HSRP&A involve extensive interaction with users to help them frame their questions so that they take advantage of what can be learned from the data their organization has available. The MS in HSRP&A program will provide you analytical skills that can be applied in numerous settings—program evaluation, systems and industrial engineering, analytic health care management, health policy analysis, and more! And, the MS in HSRP&A program works with local employers to develop internships that provide 2nd year students with a stipend, and the opportunity to develop your skills in real-world settings.
The links in the box “In this section” on the right take you to more information on careers, jobs, the program, and events.
The MS-HSRPA program has a Google Groups site for its students, alumni, and sponsors. The Group is used to communicate about MS-HSRPA events, participate in discussions, post job opportunities, find people interested in a job at your organization, and locate fellow members. If you are a student, alumni, or a sponsor we invite you to join!
The key contacts for MS HSRPA are: Program Directors François Sainfort sainf001@umn.edu and Doug Wholey whole001@umn.edu and Program Coordinator Maureen Andrew andre031@umn.edu.