Integrated course: processing system and BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION

Module BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION

1) 1) KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING

The "Business Economics" course aims to provide students with the basic elements for understanding the economics of the healthcare sector. It will provide useful information on the institutional framework of the healthcare system, with particular reference to the Italian one, through up-to-date and topical information on the issues of efficiency and effectiveness in the provision of healthcare services.
Upon completion of the course, students should be able to:
·        understand the fundamental principles of economics applied to healthcare systems;
·        describe the main characteristics of the functioning of the healthcare system;
·        develop analytical skills in the context of the business environment in general and the healthcare industry in particular;
·        understand the financing and organizational models of healthcare systems;
·        understand the concepts of equity, efficiency, appropriateness, and sustainability;
·        know the mechanisms of Health Technology Assessment (HTA);
·        understand national and European healthcare regulations;
·        Identify the elements subject to economic evaluation that guide business decisions;
·        Recognize the main performance measurement tools, useful for various business objectives.

 
2) ABILITY TO APPLY KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING

Students will master the basic concepts, developing initial skills in applying business economics, including in the healthcare sector. They will be able to solve practical cases; apply problems; use the fundamental principles of cost analysis in relation to benefits, utility, and effectiveness; and analyze and develop strategies for rationalizing healthcare spending. They will also be able to develop adequate business economics problem-solving skills that allow them to operate confidently in complex work environments.

 
3) MAKING JUDGMENT

At the end of the "Business Economics" course, students should be able to:
·        Independently formulate an assessment of the cost-effectiveness, effectiveness, and efficiency of healthcare organizations;
·        Critically evaluate economic and clinical evidence;
·        Formulate evidence-based recommendations (evidence-based policy);
·        Analyze trade-offs between equity and efficiency;
·        Evaluate the ethical and social impact of resource allocation decisions;
·        Know how to operate in contexts of uncertainty.

 
4) COMMUNICATION SKILLS

Upon completion of the "Business Economics" course, students will be able to express themselves and communicate, using the core knowledge and basic technical language of business economics acquired during the course.
Specifically, they will be able to:
·        Communicate the results of economic analyses to public policy makers and healthcare stakeholders;
·        Work in multidisciplinary teams (clinicians, epidemiologists, healthcare managers);
·        Use technical terminology in the health economics field.

 
5) LEARNING SKILLS

Upon completion of the "Business Economics" course, students should have developed the ability to:
·        independently undertake new, more in-depth learning paths in the economics of healthcare organizations;
·        demonstrate adequate learning skills in technical skills and theoretical knowledge, enabling them to develop independent judgment in the work environments in which they will operate;
·        independently update themselves on healthcare regulations and guidelines;
·        adapt to evolving healthcare environments (digital health, telemedicine, AI in healthcare).

The teaching activity will be structured through frontal lessons, with the aid of concept maps and demonstrations in graphic-mathematical form of the most important economic concepts and institutes. Ample space will be given to student interventions. The teaching aids used during the lessons will always be those present in the classroom (blackboard and markers), as the graphic and mathematical-financial demonstrations carried out "live" will make it possible for more direct, participatory and aware learning on the part of the students, who will take gradually familiarity and familiarity with theorems, formulas and axial projections.

No one, in particular.

Attendance is mandatory. Allowed absences must not exceed the percentage of the number of hours envisaged by the Degree Course Regulations.

- Elements of Economics: Choices and Constraints: the economic behavior - Exchange, market, money – Economic systems – Theory of Production – Firm equilibrium – Production costs – The supply curve – Elasticity and graphical analysis of supply and demand – The various forms of market: common features and differences – The "failures" market mechanisms and the related corrective policies.

- The characteristics of good “health": The definition of "health" according to the World Health  Organization – The measurement of health status – Health economics: definitions and analysis contexts – The relationships existing between the healthcare sector and the rest of the Economy.

- The Demand in Health Care: The need for health and the demand for healthcare services – The differences with respect to the microeconomic model of demand – The principal-agent model between physician and patient and the types of information asymmetry – Moral hazard and adverse selection, limits of healthcare insurance markets and role of the State – Critical aspects of the question: the phenomenon of "induction" – Problems of rationing and ethics in health.

- The Supply in Health: Healthcare production, supply, and market – The production function in Health – Input, output, and outcome – The theory of Hospitals – Applied Economics at hospitals: cost analysis – The definition and evaluation of the product – Measurement of outcome and quality of life – The relationship between health and economic development.

1.  1. Zangrandi, A. (a cura di), Economia e management per le professioni sanitarie, Mc Graw Hill,Milano, the latest edition.

2.     2. Sobbrio, G., Corso int. di Economia, Trischitta, the latest edition.

The assessment will be oral, during the scheduled exam sessions, and will require analysis and graphic demonstration of the economic theories covered in the course.

The assessment, expressed in thirtieths, will take into account the achievement of the expected learning outcomes, consistent with the Dublin Descriptors (knowledge and understanding; Apply knowledge and understanding; Making judgment; Communication skills; Learning skills).

1. Knowledge and Understanding

The student must demonstrate:

• knowledge of the fundamental principles of Healthcare Business Economics;

• understanding of the mechanisms underlying the functioning of healthcare systems;

• mastery of the concepts of efficiency, equity, supply and demand for healthcare services, and the economic evaluation of healthcare interventions.

The assessment will be primarily based on theoretical questions and questions defining and critically explaining concepts.

2. Applying Knowledge and Understanding

The student must be able to:

• apply economic models to the analysis of healthcare problems;

• interpret epidemiological and economic data.

Assessment will be through exercises, case study analysis, and discussion of decision-making scenarios.

3. Making judgments

The student must demonstrate:

• the ability to critically evaluate health policies and allocation choices;

• awareness of the ethical and economic implications of healthcare decisions;

• the ability to integrate economic, clinical, and institutional information in formulating a reasoned judgment.

Assessment will be through open-ended questions, discussion of scientific articles, and/or the preparation of a short critical essay.

4. Communication skills

The student must be able to:

• correctly use the technical language of Healthcare Business Economics;

• clearly, coherently, and reasonedly present theoretical concepts and analytical results;

• concisely present data and conclusions.

Assessment may consist of an oral exam and/or presentation of the assigned work.

5. Learning skills

The student must demonstrate:

• the ability to consult and understand scientific sources and institutional reports;

• the ability to independently update oneself on emerging topics in Healthcare Business Economics;

• the ability to connect course content with other economic and healthcare disciplines.

This skill will be assessed indirectly through the in-depth analysis demonstrated during the oral exam or the quality of any written paper.