University of Iowa Health Management & Policy

By: Alexa Saco The University of Iowa Master of Healthcare Administration Program has had one heck of a year including a perfect score from the Commission on the Accreditation of Healthcare Management  Education (CAHME) at the time of  their onsite visit in March, to jumping two spots to number eight in the  World News and Report program rankings. With almost one year under my belt I could not be more thankful to be a part of such a progressive and well-structured program.  Faculty, staff, current students and alumni take a lot of time out of their schedules to answer questions, interview, and connect with prospective students. For most of the program’s history, each cohort has consisted of 20-25 students, no more, no less. This year however, the increased interest in the program and the unbelievable talent allowed for a cohort of 28 students.  The Health Management and Policy Department could not be more excited about the new set of talen...

By Bri Johnson-  Coordinator for Executive Academic Programs Executive MHA recruitment and admissions is in full swing, and inquiries and prospective applications are once again very strong. The most recent incoming cohort this past August saw the highest numbers of newly enrolled students for the Iowa MHA executive track yet, with 15 new EMHA students matriculating, along with two students enrolling in our new Healthcare Management Certificate for working professionals.  Unlike the traditional track of the Iowa Program which has a fairly fixed admissions cycle of October to April, admissions activity for the executive track occurs year-round. These activities now include at least six EMHA Open Houses at healthcare organizations within one hour driving distance of Iowa City or Des Moines, a robust and growing social media presence, and direct email marketing to healthcare leaders across Iowa. Coming soon is the re-launch of the executive track pages on the College of ...

The University of Iowa looks forward to the many highlights ACHE's 2019 Congress on Healthcare Leadership has to offer the students, staff, faculty and alumni of the program. Please consider joining us for any of the events listed below! 

By Ian Montgomery -  Executive MHA Program Director,  Clinical Associate Professor Department of Health Management and Policy  Bri Johnson - Coordinator for Executive Academic Programs Bri Johnson has been promoted to the new position of Coordinator for Executive Academic Programs. This position became necessary due to the volume and complexity growth of the department’s Executive programs: the Executive MHA, the Healthcare Management Certificate, and training programs under the CHESS umbrella.  Bri focuses largely on supporting our current Executive students; implementing marketing activities (copy design, social media, open houses, etc.); and assisting faculty, many of whom are adjuncts (ICON management, Zoom class connectivity, etc.). She also provides daily onsite representation for all of the Executive programs, especially when Ian is offsite.

By Ellie Keuter (MHA '19) Suresh Gunasekaran, MBA, joined UI Hospitals and Clinics as the Chief Executive Officer and Associate Vice President of UI Health Care in November, 2018. Along with his new role, he has jumped right in to educate the next generation of health care administrators by teaching the MHA Integrative Capstone course. The course is a 3 hour seminar for students in their final semester of the MHA program. Students have the opportunity to learn about various areas of hospital operations, including diversity and inclusion, quality and safety, the patient experience, supply chain, revenue cycle, and information systems. The second-year students have found the class nicely ties together concepts they’ve been learning in their curriculum over the past two years, and are thrilled to have Mr. Gunasekaran as their instructor this spring.  Mr. Gunasekaran has also continued the support of the administrative fellowship program at UIHC through his mentorship of Kim...

By: Ian Montgomery Clinical Associate Professor and Executive MHA Program Director Advancing to Leadership is the program’s tagline and that’s exactly what our 2018 graduates are doing! Within just four months of graduation, 75% of that cohort advanced to promotions or new jobs. One is Sean Boarini, (Executive) MHA '18, who is now the Director of Surgical Services at The Iowa Clinic in Des Moines. Sean shared his administrative expertise with our traditional-track first-year students when they were there for a site visit in September. (see below) Sean Boarini (Executive) MHA '18 presenting to first-year Iowa MHA traditional-track students. Two recent Executive MHA graduates chose to leave their employments and start administrative fellowships. Katie Fredericks, (Executive) MHA '18, joined Kaiser Permanente, Los Angeles in July of this year and Katie Schaier, (Executive) MHA '18, will join UI Physicians in June 2019. Leaving employment after graduation to...

2018 First-Year EMHA Cohort  By: Ian Montgomery Clinical Associate Professor and Executive MHA Program Director  The executive MHA track continues to experience growth in almost every dimension. This year’s incoming cohort is the largest (15), has the highest percentage of clinicians (2/3), and most students attending our Des Moines campus (7). We are especially proud of the experiential diversity in our cohorts, with our five-year totals showing parity in clinician/manager enrollment.  The program currently has 28 instructors, and two-thirds of those are healthcare administrators. Almost every course has two instructors, with 82% (all but three courses) including at least one who also works as a healthcare administrator.  Bri Johnson has also been promoted to Coordinator of Executive Academic Programs where she’ll focus on prospective student development and faculty support.  We’re excited to start ramping up recruitment for 2019 admi...

By: Alexa Saco (MHA '20) The University of Iowa MHA Program has one of the most dedicated alumni bases in the country. Because of their support, we have been able to provide a record amount of financial assistance in 2018-19. Last fall and early spring, we were able to award over $37,680 in recruitment scholarships, and 28 Graduate Assistantships (worth approximately $630,000) to help recruit exceptionally talented MHA students to Iowa. Additionally, this fall we were able to provide over $19,000 in merit-based scholarships to our returning students to honor their outstanding work. Through the generosity of our alumni community, we are happy to be able maintain Iowa’s reputation of recruiting and developing outstanding MHA students.  A major priority of the University, College and our MHA program is to ensure our programs support diversity, equity and inclusion. By securing funding through the College of Public Health and the University of Iowa Graduate College, we...

By: Alexa Saco (MHA '20)  MHA Class of 2020 On August 20 th  the University of Iowa MHA program started the academic year with a group of 24 new students eager to begin their journey of master’s level education. The MHA class of 2020 is a well-rounded group of students showing outstanding potential for the future of health care. The incoming class is characterized by high levels of academic achievement paired with diverse backgrounds in the health care workforce. The new cohort’s work experiences range from positions as entry-level administrators in hospitals, health insurance consultants, x-ray technicians, Medicare coverage analysts, and much more. They bring an extensive amount of knowledge to the table from all aspects of health care and this is reflected in their appetite in the classroom. As far as extracurricular activities go over the first few months, the students have gotten involved in a wide variety. These include volunteer opportunities such as even...

Gwendolyn Archibald became the Director of Student Services and Academic Program Support for the College of Public Health’s Department of Health Management and Policy (HMP) in July of 2017.  Originally from Davenport, Iowa, Gwen is pursuing a doctoral degree in   Higher Education & Student Affairs (HESA) in the College of Education. This degree will join her previous degrees from the University of Iowa, including   a master’s degree in   Student Development in Postsecondary Education. Gwen   has found her new role in the HMP to be a perfect fit for her, as it affords the opportunity to follow her passion of student development while offering a significant role   in the administrative decision-making and direction of the department. These two aspects of her job offer a unique chance to build and expand upon the knowledge she gained from working with graduate students and faculty at Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalis...

In January, Iowa MHA program alumnus Doug Boysen (JD/MHA ’98) will become the new President and CEO of Samaritan Health Services in Corvallis, Oregon.  A native Iowan, Doug’s career path is reflective of the emphasis he places on teamwork and collaboration. These values, born from his time on the University of Northern Iowa golf team, were reinforced in Iowa City, as the MHA program’s small size fostered close relationships with his peers and the curriculum placed a premium on teamwork. These values led him away from his first job at a health law firm in Wisconsin to Legacy Health in Portland, Oregon where he could work within a health system rather than representing systems from the outside.   After several years in Portland, Doug accepted a position at Samaritan and served as General Counsel for eight years before returning to the Midwest and joining UnityPoint Health in Madison. His return was short-lived, however, as he was recruited to return to Corvallis t...