Curriculum, Goals and Outcomes

The Need For Business Knowledge

In the churn of the modern healthcare environment, participants emerge as either leaders or spectators. Business knowledge can empower physicians to step into leadership roles.

Is Your Role What You Want it To Be?

Today's physicians must equip themselves with sound knowledge of business fundamentals to accurately assess the impact of their decisions on the financial stability of their organization. A successful physician executive must have these skills:

• Effective business management
• Mastery of the healthcare environment
• Business plan creation and implementation
• leadership of change
• understanding of finance

Diverse Leadership Roles

Many PEMBA graduates have been promoted at least once, some twice, since enrollment. Our 246 graduates currently serve in the following physician-leadership positions.

One Year Of Study To Complete Degree

The University of Tennessee College of Business Administration applied its expertise in graduate business education to design a curriculum to meet the specific needs of physician executives. We designed an innovative combination of delivery mechanisms and an accommodating schedule.

Residency Periods Limited To Four, Single-week Sessions

Because most physicians told us they could participate in on-campus activities for no more than one week at a time and there should be no more than four on-campus periods per year, half of the one-year PEMBA program occurs in four, one-week, residency periods.

Interactive, Internet-based Classes

The off-campus half of PEMBA is offered using distance education technology and the Internet, thus limiting travel time and costs. The 40 PEMBA internet classes (Cyberclasses) are delivered to the physician's own personal computer via state-of-the-art audio and data conferencing. These real-time, interactive, instructor-led classes replicate a face-to-face classroom experience, minus the travel.

Internationally Accredited MBA

We are accredited by the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB). Accreditation by AACSB represents the highest standard of achievement for business schools worldwide. AACSB accreditation is the hallmark of excellence in management education.

A Hand-tailored Program

In designing this program, we planned to exceed the requirements of our participants, so we put aside all preconceptions of what the program should be and conducted focus groups with physicians. We also interviewed healthcare leaders. They told us that the ideal Physician Executive MBA program should:

1. Help transform selected physicians from a clinical role to a leadership role;
2. Equip selected physicians already in leadership positions with the necessary knowledge and skills so that they can excel in their leadership roles; and
3. Fit the stringent time constraints of the clinical practice, participant's position, and current organization.

Crafted on the basis of the results, the University of Tennessee's Physician Executive MBA (PEMBA) is the first physician-focused program to shatter time and distance barriers with breakthrough technology solutions designed to keep you near your family and productive in practice while acquiring new skills.

Program Limited to Physicians Only

The Physician Executive MBA focuses only on the business of healthcare; class content and discussions are alwayson topic and relevant.

Active Alumni Network

The Physician Executive MBA Advisory Council (PAC) consists of two, peer-elected physician leaders from each class. The PAC guides annual alumni reunions and alumni networking across classes.

Curriculum

The curriculum was developed for a very unique student - the current or future physician executive. We based this curriculum design on extensive research on what physicians want in an MBA. Here is what our research revealed and how we customized our curriculum around that research:

• Physicians want a program that gives them the concepts and skills to assume leadership positions in their organizations.
• Physicians want a holistic program that integrates the various business functions into a coherent whole.
• Physicians want to learn the language of business so that they can deal more effectively with other business executives.
• Physicians want a flexible program tailored to their busy lifestyle
• Physicians want an individualized Leadership Development program

The table below highlights some of the major topics covered during the PEMBA program.

	Curriculum Module
Curriculum Element	1	2	3
Accounting
Business Ethics
Business Planning
Careers
Computer Training/Development
Communications
Decision-Making and Negotiating
Disease Management
E-Health
Entrepreneurship
Finance
Global/International Healthcare
Governance
Health Policy
Healthcare Law
Human Resources/Performance Improvement
Information Management
Leadership Development
Lean Healthcare and Six Sigma
Management and Leadership
Medicaid/Medicare Managed Care Policy
Marketing
Operations Management
Organizational Design, Behavior and Change
Project Management
Quality Improvement
Statistics
Strategy