Calendar

The OCW calendar combines material from the Spring 2011 offering (course number HST.184) and Spring 2012 offering (course number HST.S14), sequenced in a way the instructors feel makes sense for OCW users. The 2011 class emphasized lectures by guest speakers, whereas the 2012 class focused on case studies and mentored projects.

LEC # TOPICS OBJECTIVES LECTURERS
Module I: Setting the Stage for eHealth
1 Translational research and advocacy: New paradigms for equity

Understand health inequities and the social determinants of health. Overview of the medical illnesses, the status of health care, and common human resource limitations in developing countries.

Joia Mukherjee (Partners in Health)
2 Design and impact of health information systems in developing countries Background on health information systems that have been implemented in developing countries and the evidence on their impact. Hamish Fraser (Partners in Health, Harvard Medical School)
3 Overview of quality improvement Understand the nature and extent of medical errors and how healthcare organizations should respond when adverse events occur. Leo Celi (MIT, Sana)
4 Project mentor presentations Class mentors present their ongoing Sana implementation projects to inform students of real-life examples of health information systems. Trishan Panch (Sana), Ikaro Silva (MIT, Sana), Freeman Changamire (Tufts University)
Module II: Designing Health Information Systems
5 Sana development workshop: Android client and OpenMRS development Optional workshop series on developing mobile health applications using the Sana mobile health system. Eric Winkler (Sana)
6 Operations management at the front lines

Evaluate the performance of operating units, understand why they perform as they do, and design new or improved operating procedures and systems.

Project: Proposal due at start of class

Martin Were (Indiana University)
7 Process improvement theory and application Understand the methods used for improving process quality. Brandon Bennett (Institute for Healthcare Improvement)
8 Case study: Designing a diabetes screening project in Punjab Learn the challenges of screening for diabetes in rural Punjab, India and lessons learned. Trishan Panch (Sana)
9 Case study: Wireless labor monitoring for developing settings: From idea to prototype to testing and beyond Learn how to bring doctors and engineers and others together to transform an indea into something truly useful, e.g. prototype development and creation of optimal use cases. Jessica Haberer (Massachusetts General Hospital)
10 Development of standard terminology for global maternal and child health Understand the need for standard terminology in healthcare delivery, and how a new standard for maternal and child health is being developed. Jonathan Payne (Partners in Health)
11 Smart software design for healthcare: unbiased signals, open and affordable technology for resource-constrained healthcare Examine some of the challenges delivering care in developing countries, and how software and intelligent algorithms can improve care. Gari D. Clifford (University of Oxford)
Module III: Creating a Culture of Quality in Health Care
12 Innovation and Adoption of New Practices

Examine principles of innovation and the adoption of new practices that can guide the design of successful quality improvement projects.

Project: Interim outline and pitches

Jonathan Jackson (Dimagi)
13 Checklists: Quality improvement in developing countries Understand how checklists improve safety and how they are used; recognize some of the similarities and differences in improving quality of care in different settings. Priya Agrawal and Alvin Kwok (World Health Organization, Harvard School of Public Health)
14 Evaluating process and outcome metrics in the context of quality Learn how to design a measurement approach to systematically measure dimensions of quality in clinical care systems. Lisa Hirschhorn (Harvard Medical School)
15 Evaluating process and outcome metrics: Patient Safety

Learn how to design an evaluation study with appropriate clinical and economic outcomes.

Pedro Delgado (Institute for Healthcare Improvement)
16 Organizational change: Positive deviance Understand how to design and lead systems changes to achieve quality improvement within a heath-care organization. Jessica Haberer (Massachusetts General Hospital)
17 Case study: Neri Clinics: Primary care in the developing world Examine primary care in Zambia and the challenges of implementing technology to improve healthcare. Patrick McSharry (Neri Clinics)
18 Organizational change: Lean sigma Discuss the application of management models drawn from production industries to health-care delivery. Andrew Kanter (Millenium Villages Project)
19 Collaborative change and wrap-up Discuss the model of inter-organizational learning as an approach to quality improvement. Chaitali Sinha (IDRC)
20 Student final project presentations Each team gives a 10–12 minute presentation, followed by short Q&A. Students
21 Health system design: Lessons from Rwanda and Haiti Understand health system strengthening and its limitations. Paul Farmer (Partners in Health)
Learning Resource Types
Lecture Videos
Lecture Notes
Projects with Examples