HSMP 587: Health Care Financial Management
Fall 2017
Portland State University
Division of Public Administration
Class Meeting: Monday 6:40-9:20pm, NH 437
Professor: Neal Wallace, Ph.D.
Office: 670L UPA Building
Contact Info: Ph: (503) 725-8248, Fax: (503) 725-8250, email:
Office Hours: Tuesday, Wednesday 2:00-3:00pm, other times by appointment
Course Description:
This course fulfills core requirements for the Health Management and Policy track of the Oregon MPH program and as a health elective for the MPA: Health Administration program. The purpose of this course is to provide students with an understanding of the fundamentals of financial management principles and their use and application within the health care sector. Financial management is often confused with “bean counting”. While “counting beans” provides the foundation for sound financial management, it is the appropriate strategic application of this information that defines “true” financial management. Financial concerns pervade all aspects of an organization’s activities including basic decisions of what, how, and how much of any good or service to provide. Sound financial management assures that these choices are made in a manner that most effectively reflects and promotes an organization’s values and objectives. The course does not require any specific preparation in economics or mathematics, but some basic economic theory and mathematical applications are included in the coursework.
Prerequisites:
HSMP 574 Health Systems Organization.
Course Competencies:
As a result of participation in this course, students should be able to:
· Understand the ethical basis of sound financial management.
· Use of EXCEL for financial reporting, modeling and analysis.
· Develop, interpret and analyze budgets and financial statements.
· Develop, interpret and analyze allocations of production costs.
· Understand the value, issues and techniques of managing production costs.
· Understand types of external short and long-term financing and the financial implications of financing choices.
· Understand the types of reimbursement mechanisms prevalent in healthcare, the risks and opportunities inherent in them and their implications for the organization of production.
Evaluation:
Students will be evaluated on their ability to articulate the financial management concepts presented and their application to health care services and organizations. There will be a take home mid-term and a take home final exam. Graded problem sets and in-class exercises will be provided to develop familiarity and facility with the ideas and techniques addressed in class. Final grades will be determined based on the following three areas and their relative weighting:
Completed problem sets (6) 10%
Mid-term exam 40%
Final exam 50%
Exams and problem sets are expected to be completed on time. Failure to do so will be penalized.
Required Texts (Available in PSU Bookstore):
William N. Zelman et al Financial Management of Health Care Organizations 2nd Edition, Blackwell Publishers, Malden MA, 2003.
***Syllabus, problem sets, answers, tests will be available online at http://web.pdx.edu/~nwallace/HFM
Reading and Assignments:
September 25 -- Financial Management and its Application in Health Care and Health Care Management,
Chapter 1: The Context of Health Care Financial Management
October 2 - General Accounting, Budgeting Overview, Statistics Budget
Chapter 3 – Principles and Practices of Health Care Accounting
Chapter 10 - Budgeting
***Problem Set #1***
October 9 – Expense and Revenue Budget
***Problem Set #2***
October 16 – Cash and Capital Budget
***Problem Set #3***
Chapter 5 – Working Capital Management
October 23– Time Value of Money, Capital Budgeting Analysis, Midterm review
***Take Home Mid-Term Hand-Out***
Chapter 6 - Time Value of Money
Chapter 7 – The Investment Decision
October 30 – Financial Statements and Analysis
Chapters 2 – Health Care Financial Statements
Chapter 4 – Financial Statement Analysis
***Take Home Mid-Term Due***
November 6 – Cost & Cost Allocation
***Problem Set #4***
Chapters 11 - Responsibility Accounting
Chapter 12 – Cost Finding Methods
November 13 – Production Cost Management, Analysis and Pricing
***Problem Set #5***
Chapter 9 – Using Cost Information to Make Special Decisions
November 20 – Provider Payment Systems
***Problem Set #6***
Chapter 13 – Provider Payment Systems
November 27 – Financing & Investment Decisions
***Take Home Final Exam Hand-Out***
Chapter 8 – Capital financing for Healthcare Providers
December 4 -- ***Take Home Final Exam Due***