Quality, Patient Safety and Outcomes Research

Overview

The certificate program is designed for graduate students from the Johns Hopkins Schools of Public Health, Medicine, and Nursing and health-related professionals interested in quality, patient safety, and outcomes research. The certificate program requires a mentored practicum that provides a hands-on, supervised experience in research or practice related to quality of care, patient safety, or outcomes research. The practicum may be conducted in a health care setting or organization or with a team of researchers, subject to approval by the certificate faculty.

Educational Objectives

Those who complete the certificate program will gain competencies in quality, patient safety, and outcomes research; however the program does not provide training in conducting research. Students completing the certificate program will be able to:

Quality

1. Describe several frameworks and theories for assessing and improving the quality of medical care
2. Describe current key policy and programmatic areas in quality of care
3. Understand how to assess quality of care for a medical condition 
4. Describe key elements of published quality assessment and improvement studies
5. Understand how to develop a workable quality improvement and evaluation plan

Safety

1. Recognize the extent of problems in patient safety in medical care
2. Describe the role of various systems and factors in creating safety and in causing errors and adverse events 
3. Discuss problems and issues in measuring and reporting safety
4. Demonstrate knowledge of the basics of conducting an incident investigation and disclosing an adverse event
5. Design solutions to improve patient safety
6. Understand the ethical, legal, and regulatory implications related to patient safety

Patient Outcomes Research

1. Argue for the importance and challenges of using patient and consumer reported measures in research, clinical practice, and program evaluation
2. Compare the different types of instruments available to measure health related quality of life 
3. Critique the use of commonly used patient reported outcomes in specific applications
4. Plan the development of a new questionnaire
5. Understand the role of patient-centered outcomes research in improving health, including its place in the U.S. research portfolio; the importance of stakeholders in the research process, and policy implications related to implementation
6. Identify study designs and methodologies unique to patient outcomes research

Eligibility

The certificate program is open to currently enrolled masters and doctoral students at The Johns Hopkins University Schools of Medicine, Nursing, and Public Health, with the exception of JHSPH MAS students, who are not eligible to apply until they have completed their degree program.  It is also offered to non-degree students with at least a baccalaureate degree from an accredited college or university, a strong record of successful academic performance, and a minimum of three years (full-time equivalent) of professional experience in a related health care field.

Admissions Process

Applicants must review the How to Apply page for important deadlines and information about the application process, including links to the declaration of intent forms that current JHSPH students must complete.

The certificate program's review committee will review the applications and notify each applicant of their admissions decision.  Only those approved and notified by the certificate admissions committee may earn the certificate.

Requirements for Successful Completion

The certificate program requires a minimum of 21 term credits, including four required courses,  the practicum, and at least six credits of elective courses.  Students should contact the faculty sponsor as early as possible to discuss the practicum.  All required and elective courses must be taken for a letter grade and a 2.75 or better overall GPA for all certificate courses required.  The certificate program length is flexible; it varies from student to student, however, the program must be completed within three years.

The student should review the section of the website that addresses completion before completing certificate program requirements.The student's transcript will not indicate that the certificate was earned until the Notification of Completion has been submitted, verified by the certificate program and processed by the Registrar.

Course of Study

Students should check the course catalog to confirm when the courses are offered.  The term and time may change from what is listed in the table below and some courses are only offered every other year.  Students should also check for pre-requisites and whether instructor consent is required.

SI= Course is offered in the Summer Institute held in June and July in Baltimore
WI= Course is offered in the Winter Institute held in January in Baltimore/Washington, DC

Contact Information

Sponsoring Department
Health Policy and Management

Certificate Program Contact
Name: Pamela Davis
Phone: 410.614.1580
Email: HPM_Certificates@jhu.edu

Faculty Sponsor
Name: Albert Wu, MD, MPH

Program Associate Director
Name: Lilly Engineer, MD, DrPH, MHA

Gainful Employment Program Information

In accordance with US Department of Education regulations, the JHU Bloomberg School of Public Health is required to disclose graduation rate data, median loan debt data, and other select information for all Title IV eligible gainful employment programs. To see the most recent data available for this gainful employment program, please view the attached disclosure.