SEMESTER: Spring 2020

COURSE NUMBER: PHW223

 

This class is run by the Masters of Public Health (MPH) program

 

COURSE TITLE: Strategic Management and the Organization of Health Services

 

UNITS OF CREDIT: 3 Units

 

INSTRUCTOR: Joe Houska, PhD

 

E-MAIL ADDRESS: joehouska@berkeley.edu

 

CLASS WEB PAGE LOCATION (HTTP URL):  Online via bCourses

 

MEETING DAY(S)/TIME: This is an online course that runs between March 9th and May 3rd   There are no in person meetings, all interactions are online with faculty, students, etc

 

PREREQUISITE(S):  Students are expected to have had at least one course dealing with the healthcare system or relevant work-related experience. Students are required to have general background knowledge of the health system.

 

ABSTRACT OF COURSE'S CONTENT AND OBJECTIVES: 
The overall purpose of this 3 unit course is to assist you in developing leadership skills involving strategic planning, analysis, and implementation. Emphasis is placed upon the leader's role in simultaneously taking into account a wide variety of internal and external factors to improve organization and system performance in meeting the health needs of individuals and communities. Particular attention is given to the importance of developing and implementing innovative strategies and the process of innovation itself. 

 

BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH: 

Joe Houska, PhD holds a BA in Political Science from the University of Santa Clara (1968), an MA in International Relations from Yale University (1973), and a Ph.D. in Political Science from Yale University (1979) with a focus on the politics of Western Europe and the application of quantitative research methods to political data. His book, Influencing Mass Political Behavior: Elites and Political Subcultures in the Netherlands and Austria, was published by UC Berkeley in 1985.

 

As Vice President (retired 2015) for Strategic Projects and Consulting with The Permanente Medical Group, Dr. Houska oversaw the medical group’s internal consulting capabilities for performance improvement and was responsible for the support of TPMG’s Board of Directors. He also provided leadership for selected strategic initiatives in Information Technology, Privacy and Security, and Competitive Analysis. In earlier roles at Kaiser Permanente and Blue Cross of California, he had responsibility for management consulting, strategic and business planning, organizational design, decision support, and market research.

 

Dr. Houska has also held positions as a Peace Corps Volunteer in the Republic of Chad; Elementary School Teacher at the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., School in Syracuse, N.Y.; and faculty positions in Political Science at Boston University, Stanford University, and the University of California, Berkeley.

 

In transitioning from professor to vice-president, he found employers who recognized the value of the social science expertise that he could bring to work in healthcare. He found in the healthcare field near endlessly interesting and important work to be done, as well as the pleasure of being able to live his values at work. Serendipity struck again upon his retirement from Kaiser; a former dean suggested that he combine his 34 years’ work experience with his academic background and teach Strategic Management in the Health Sector for OOMPH. He looks forward to the course and the work that you will do in the future.