Health Care Systems

  • Introduction
  • Research
  • Academic Programs
  • Contact Information

    • Introduction
    The health care industry, now the nation's second-largest employer, has had an increasingly important impact on the United States economy. Public concern about the management and delivery of health care services is near the top of the national agenda, and the factors and policies influencing health care systems in the U.S. and around the world are a natural subject for Wharton researchers. Now pharmaceuticals, biotechnology, and other changes in technology continually create new opportunities and new managerial challenges.

    Wharton's Health Care Systems Department brings particular strengths in health economics and health management. Disciplines such as law, policy, ethics, and decision analysis are represented by the department's secondary appointments and by faculty who work at the University of Pennsylvania's schools of medicine and nursing. Adjunct faculty members are also drawn from health industry experts in the Philadelphia area.

    Research
    Major areas of research currently pursued by the Health Care Systems Department's faculty include:

    • Alternatives to managed care insurance
    • Exploring whether tax-advantaged, employer-paid health insurance is efficient and equitable
    • Analysis of pharmaceuticals pricing policies in a global marketplace
    • Management of health care supply chain
    • Academic medical center and the market for medical residents
    • Developing a comprehensive national health policy for Medicare
    • Determining the impact of patient and physician incentives on managed care
    • Analysis of the structure, provisions, finances, and outcomes of integrated delivery systems
    Department faculty participate in the activities of the following Wharton research centers:

    Academic Programs
    The Health Care Systems Department offers concentrations in health care at three levels:

    These programs offer education and training in economics, management, and policy related to the health care industry in the U.S. and abroad. An undergraduate joint-degree program with the School of Nursing, a University Minor in Biological Behavior and Health Services Management, and a University Minor in Nursing and Health Services Management are offered.

    Contact
    For further information about the Wharton Health Care Systems Department, please contact:

    Health Care Systems Department
    The Wharton School
    University of Pennsylvania
    204 Colonial Penn Center
    3641 Locust Walk
    Philadelphia, PA 19104-6218
    215.898.6861 phone
    215.573.2157 fax

    Faculty

    Chairperson

    Burns, Lawton R.

    Professors
    Burns, Lawton R.
    Danzon, Patricia M.
    Harrington, Scott
    Pauly, Mark V.

    Assistant Professors
    David, Guy

    Faculty With Secondary Appointments in the Department
    Wharton Faculty
    Hershey, John C. (Operations and Information Management)
    Kimberly, John R. (Management)
    Rosoff, Arnold J. (Legal Studies and Business Ethics)

    University Faculty
    Asch, David A.
    Glick, Henry
    Schwartz, J. Sanford
    Silber, Jeffrey H.
    Volpp, Kevin
    Williams, Sankey V.

    Affiliated Faculty
    Anessi, Eugenio
    DeParle, Nancy A.
    Doranz, Benjamin J.
    Field, Robert I.
    Gilmore, Thomas
    Ikegami, Naoki
    Keuffel, Eric L.
    Kinney, June M.
    Kruse, Gregory B.
    Kurtzman, Gary J.
    Libson, Jeffrey P.
    Mahadevan, Han
    McMorrow, Stacy
    Polsky, Daniel
    Present, Douglas a.
    Sammut, Stephen M.
    Stavrakas, Spyros
    Whitman, John

    Emeritus Faculty
    Kissick, William L.
    Pierskalla, William P.
    Rovin, Sheldon

      © 2007 University of Pennsylvania