Department of Public Administration and Health Management

Undergraduate Courses

  • PAHM-H 320 Health Systems Administration (3 cr.) An overview of the U.S. health care delivery system. It examines the organization, function, and role of the system; current system problems; and alternative systems or solutions.
  • PAHM-H 352 Healthcare Finance I (3 cr.) A study of the financial management of health care facilities, based on generally accepted business principles. Accounting and managerial control of cash, accounts receivable, inventory control, budgeting, and cost control, as well as accounting and evaluation of short- and long-term debt will be examined.
  • PAHM-H 354 Health Economics (3 cr.) This course applies economics to the study of administrative and policy issues in the health care sector. Economic concepts are used to explain the system of health care financing and the organization of health care delivery in the U.S. The economic evaluation of health care programs is also discussed.
  • PAHM-H 365 Health Administration Practicum (3 cr.) The Health Administration Practicum will consist of a personal career-planning component coupled with weekly field visits to health care agencies in central Indiana. Students must perform satisfactorily in both parts of the practicum to receive a passing grade.
  • PAHM-H 401 Strategic Planning for Health Care Organizations (3 cr.) This course examines strategic planning techniques as they apply to health care organizations. Students will develop and defend a comprehensive strategic plan for a case facility. One half of the course will be conducted in a workshop format.
  • PAHM-H 402 Hospital Administration (3 cr.) The study of organization, structure, function, and fiscal operations within hospitals. The role of the hospital in the community, relationship to official and voluntary health agencies, coordination of hospital departments, and managerial involvement will be examined.
  • PAHM-H 411 Long-Term Care Administration (3 cr.) Nursing home regulations, legal aspects, and insurance; personnel management; medical records; diet and food service; rehabilitation; nursing services; psychiatric aspects in handling of geriatric patients; professional standards; use of volunteer groups.
  • PAHM-H 432 Health Care Marketing (3 cr.) A practical study of marketing in health care institutions, health service organizations, and health insurers. A basic foundation in marketing principles, new methods in marketing products and services, and inexpensive marketing techniques will be examined.
  • PAHM-H 441 Legal Aspects of Health Care Administration (3 cr.) An overview of the liability and legal responsibility, as well as legal recourse, that health care facilities may exercise. This course will discuss policies and standards relating to health facility administration. Also included is a discussion of financial aspects unique to the hospital/ health care facility environment, such as third-party payments and federal assistance.
  • PAHM-H 455 Topics in Public Health (1-3 cr.) Extensive discussion of selected topics in public health. The topic may change from semester to semester, based on resource availability and student demand. May be repeated for credit.
  • PAHM-H 456 Health Care Reimbursement (3 cr.) Course examines the organizational structures of managed care as used in the health industry. The strengths and weaknesses of managed care organizations are examined, as well as the performance of both public and private managed care organizations. Course also examines and discusses current issues surrounding managed care.
  • PAHM-H 474 Health Administration Ethics Seminar (3 cr.) This course examines health care ethical decision making challenges from the managerial perspective and explores broader policy issues associated with ethical problems in health care institutions. It provides an overview of general theories of ethical challenges in everyday managerial coursework.
  • PAHM-V 130 Current Topics in Public Affairs (1-3 cr.) Readings and discussion of current public affairs issues and problems. May be repeated for credit.
  • PAHM-V 171 Introduction to Public Administration (3 cr.) Broad coverage of public affairs through critical and analytical inquiry into policy making at all levels of government. Particular emphasis on intergovernmental relations as they affect policy in the federal system.
  • PAHM-V 221 Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector (3 cr.) This course provides a broad overview of the U.S. nonprofit sector. Topics include the sector's size and scope and its religious, historical, and theoretical underpinnings. It also examines perspectives on why people organize, donate to, and volunteer for nonprofit organizations, and looks at current challenges that the sector faces.
  • PAHM-V 263 Public Management (3 cr.) This course is an examination of the management process in public organizations in the United States. Special attention will be given to external influences on public managers, the effects of the intergovernmental environment, and, in particular, problems of management in a democratic, limited government system.
  • PAHM-V 264 Urban Structure and Policy (3 cr.) An introduction to urban government and policy issues. Topics include: urban government structure and policy making, the economic foundations and development of cities, demography of cities and suburbs, land-use planning, and other selected urban policy problems.
  • PAHM-V 272 Terrorism and Public Policy (3 cr.) A survey of the incidence of terrorism in democratic societies, with particular emphasis on public policy responses designed to combat terrorism in cities. Overviews of ongoing conflicts with terrorist organizations in various countries are interspersed with analyses of significant terrorist events and public policies and responses such events create.
  • PAHM-V 275 Introduction to Emergency Management (3 cr.) An examination of the background and nature of the profession, the central theoretical debates concerning natural and human-induced disasters, mitigating and reacting to these catastrophic events, and the major roles and responsibilities of emergency managers. Current practical problems and future directions will be explored.
  • PAHM-V 346 Introduction to Government Accounting and Financial Reporting (3 cr.) An introduction to government accounting, including comparison with accounting for the private sector; intended as background for the use of financial administrators. The course primarily deals with municipal accounting. Not open to students with more than seven credit hours of accounting.
  • PAHM-V 362 Nonprofit Management and Leadership (3 cr.) Students in this course examine the management practices of nonprofit organizations. The course encourages students to take the perspectives of nonprofit managers, volunteers, board members, policy-makers, donors, and clients. Course projects expand understanding of the nonprofit sector and develop students’ management skills, analytical tools, and knowledge.
  • PAHM-V 366 Managing Behavior in Public Organizations (3 cr.) This course provides an introduction to the management of people in public organizations. Focus is on behavioral science in management and related analytical and experiential applications.
  • PAHM-V 368 Managing Government Operations (3 cr.) P:PAHM-V 348 Application of analytical techniques to operating decisions in the public management sector. Cases are used extensively to illustrate the application of techniques (such as charting, capacity and demand analysis, forecasting, performance measurement, decision analysis, queuing/simulation, Markov modeling, and cost-effective analysis) to design, scheduling, and inventory assignment, transportation, and replacement decisions.
  • PAHM-V 370 Research Methods and Statistical Modeling (3 cr.) This course will introduce the student to the basic methods, issues, analytical techniques, and ethical considerations of evaluation research.
  • PAHM-V 372 Government Finance and Budgets (3 cr.) Study of fiscal management in public agencies, including revenue administration, and fiscal federalism. Examples and applications to contemporary government decisions.
  • PAHM-V 373 Human Resource Management in the Public Sector (3 cr.) The organization and operation of public personnel management systems, with emphasis on concepts and techniques of job analysis, position classification, training, affirmative action, and motivation.
  • PAHM-V 376 Law and Public Policy (3 cr.) The purpose of this course is to provide a basic understanding of the origins, process, and impact of law in the making and implementing of public policy. The course’s major objective is to provide students with the substantive concepts necessary to understand the judicial system and law in its various forms.
  • PAHM-V 378 Policy Processes in the United States (3 cr.) Course content includes analytical perspectives of the policy process, the centers of policy, and the public interest. Selected cases involving problem analysis and decision making on public issues are included, as well as discussion of current policy issues.
  • PAHM-V 379 Performance Measurement and Program Evaluation (3 cr.) This course provides an overview of program evaluation as it relates to public affairs, criminal justice, health policy, and environmental science with particular emphasis on measuring program outcomes. The course is designed for students who envision themselves working in management, policy-making, or research roles.
  • PAHM-V 380 Internship in Public and Environmental Affairs (1-6 cr.) Requires permission of the instructor. Open to interested majors upon approval of the faculty. Students are placed with public agencies or governmental units for assignment to a defined task relevant to their educational interests in public affairs. Tasks may involve staff work or research. Full-time participants may earn up to 6 credit hours. May be repeated for credit. Course is graded S/F (Satisfactory/Fail).
  • PAHM-V 386 Case Studies for Policy Analysis (3 cr.) This course focuses on analyzing case studies of public policies using a variety of disciplinary perspectives, including application of the principles and concepts of intermediate microeconomic theory.
  • PAHM-V 387 Public Administration and Emergency Management (3 cr.) An examination of the American federal system and how it affects policy making and emergency management. Topics include government programs, participation of agencies and actors from all three levels of government, the nonprofit sector, and the private sector. Administrative processes involved in managing major hazards and disasters will be presented.
  • PAHM-V 405 Public Law and the Legislative Process (3 cr.) This course focuses on Congress as a policy-making body in the U.S. public law system. It covers the constitutional framework for congressional operations, as well as technical aspects of the legislative process such as bill drafting and analysis, the role of leadership, and the prerogatives of individual members.
  • PAHM-V 412 Leadership and Ethics (3 cr.) This course is designed to examine the complex leadership issues and challenges facing communities and to explore how citizens and government can work together to address these challenges. This includes exploration of how the problems, conflicts, and dilemmas encountered by leaders when making decisions must be considered within an ethical framework.
  • PAHM-V 443 Managing Workforce Diversity (3 cr.) The composition and nature of the workforce is changing. Managers must decide how to accommodate real differences among the members of their organizations. This course seeks to provide information for practitioners who hope to integrate an understanding of workforce diversity into their management style and professional behavior.
  • PAHM-V 444 Public Administrative Organization (3 cr.) A review of research findings and analysis of the operation of public agencies and their performance.
  • PAHM-V 460 Intergovernmental Relations (3 cr.) Overview of the dynamics of multi-organizational governance in the United States. Examination of federal and other systems. Structure and operations of intergovernmental programs and the role of managers within these systems.
  • PAHM-V 473 Management, Leadership, and Policy (3 cr.) This course seeks to integrate learning across the public affairs curriculum. Students will review and reflect about their learning in management, leadership, and policy. Experiential methods service learning, projects, cases, and exercises – will be used to help students apply theory, concepts, and skills.

Academic Bulletins

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