Curriculum
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Descriptions
MEM 490: Healthcare Systems Project Practicum


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Description

This is a one (1) unit course.

Suggested background: Statistical Learning for Data Analysis, and MEM 412 Operations Excellence

Class Description

The Health Systems Project Practicum is designed to provide a "Real Day to Day Healthcare Challenge" to grad students interested in a career in healthcare operations. The expectation is for students to work in a team and focus on a portion of the problem applying operations/engineering methods

Examples of healthcare challenges engineering students have worked in 10-12 weeks:

  • Simulation of a community hospital patient flow to determine bed capacity need
  • Establish Operating room efficiency baseline performance and rank feasible strategies for improvement
  • Predictors and thresholds for optimal staffing in a maternity unit to prevent waiting

This class will guide students thru:

  • Team charter to establish team norms and procedures
  • Defining the scope of their project
  • Defining the approach,  workplan and communication with client
  • Working as a team to view the problem and solutions from different angles
  • Business story telling - how to present your work so it is understood
    • Prepare a stakeholders update
    • Prepare a final presentation to executives

Class Grading

50% - Success as a team to complete the project milestones according to plan

20% - Midterm presentation

20% - Final Presentation

10% - Teamwork

Instructor: Rebeca Khorzad
Program Manager, Patient Throughput

Northwestern Medicine North and Northwest Regions