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School of Pharmacy•

UCSF School of Pharmacy

Pharmaceutical Health Policy & Management Pathway

Mission

Our Mission is to create a challenging academic environment that builds leaders in patient-centered pharmaceutical care through an emphasis on the theory and use of evidence-based decision making, including pharmacoeconomics and systematic data reviews, which form the basis for identifying and resolving health policy and management issues in the institution, community and regulatory settings at the state, national and international levels.

Each pathway in the School of Pharmacy, including the Pharmaceutical Health Policy & Management (PHPM) Pathway, is designed to ensure that each student has ample opportunities to gain the needed course work and clinical experience to be prepared for graduation, Pharmacy Boards, and future employment.

The PHPM Pathway offers an area of unique concentration that adds not only a rounding of the pharmacy education experience, but also an important and valuable distinction in a competitive job market.

The field of health policy and management concentrates on:

  • The principles and practices of ethical evidence-based decision making affecting patient-centered pharmaceutical care
  • Legal and regulatory frameworks for the delivery of quality health care, including those relating to: patient care and privacy; drug utilization; medial product safety, effectiveness affecting labeling and product use; reimbursement, formularies, etc.
  • How pharmacoeconomics, financial incentives, and public health imperatives drive decisions by healthcare organizations
  • A familiarity with the research methods used in support of sound health policy development and management.

Today's healthcare environment is faced with an evolving set of challenges, stemming from rising costs of health care, an increasingly older and more diverse population with multiple chronic diseases, gaps in care due to poor patient adherence to recommended therapies, and ever-rising expectations of safety and benefit. This means a rounding of the basic pharmacy education with health policy and management training and experience will augment the potential for new graduates of the PHPM pathway to place themselves in the marketplace.

Go To: Pharmaceutical Health Policy & Management Pathway