History

The School of Health Policy and Management is named after the original name of Nanjing Medical University when it was founded in 1934, i.e. Jiangsu Provincial School of Medical Management. At that time Health Management, Health Education and clinical majors had already been established in our university, which makes it the first institution of higher learning that has education on health management. In July 2002, the School of Health Policy and Management was founded based on the former Department of Social Science and the Department of Public Administration. In 2010, Health Management was accredited Jiangsu Provincial Characteristic Specialty. In 2011, the Discipline of Public Administration was the only first-level discipline of public administration that has master degree programs among all medical and pharmaceutical institutions in Jiangsu Province. The professional degree program of Master of Public Administration and the independent interdisciplinary doctoral degree program of Humanistic Medicine were approved in 2014. The independent interdisciplinary doctoral degree program of Health Policy and Management was approved in 2016. Our School now has the Department of Public Administration, the Department of Pharmacoeconomics and Management, the Center for Health Policy Studies of Nanjing Medical University, the Center for Population Health and Social Development Studies, the Research Institute of Hospital Management, and the Training Center for Health Management. Institute of Healthy Jiangsu Construction and Development is affiliated to our School, which is the key think tank cultivated by Jiangsu Province and the only one think tank in the field of medicine and health in Jiangsu Province. The Advisor Center for the New Rural Cooperative Medical Scheme is also affiliated to our School. There are 15 full-time and part-time professors (researchers) and 19 associate professors (associate researchers) in our School.

Discipline construction

Our School is the first in Jiangsu Province that recruits undergraduates and graduates majoring in Health Management. There are two majors under the bachelor degree program of Public Administration, i.e. Health Management and Pharmaceutical Trade and Management. Our School has master degree programs of Public Administration which is the first-level discipline, the professional degree program of Master of Public Administration, the interdisciplinary doctoral degree program of Health Policy and Management, and the doctoral degree program of Community Medicine and Health Education which is the secondary discipline. Our School also has the Key (Cultivating) Discipline of Public Administration of Jiangsu Province and the Key Discipline of Social Medicine and Health Management of Nanjing Medical University.

Education and teaching

At present, our School has over 500 undergraduates and more than 70 graduates. Our School has chiefly edited or participated in editing six national planned textbooks, has one national high-quality course with public videos, and one provincial characteristic specialty. Our students have won various prizes. Altogether 71 students have won awards in national and provincial competitions, e.g. the Third Prize of the “Challenge Cup” National College Students Extracurricular Academic, Scientific and Technological Works Competition in the second round at Jiangsu Provincial level, the Third Prize of the “Innovation Cup” College Students Business Plan Competition at Jiangsu Provincial level, the Third Prize of Jiangsu College Students Extracurricular Academic, Scientific and Technological Works Competition, and the First Prize of the National Undergraduate Thesis Competition of the Medical and Health Management Majors.

Scientific research

Since the 12^th Five-Year Plan, our School has undertaken over 200 scientific research projects at different levels, with the total fund of nearly 10 million yuan. More than 500 research articles have been published, including over 100 articles published in Chinese core journals and nearly 20 SCI or SSCI paper. Our School has conducted or participated in a number of applied research projects commissioned by governments at different levels and medical and health institutions, provided a great many policy advice services for health and family planning commissions, departments of human resources and social security, departments of civil affairs and price departments at different levels, and submitted more than 30 documents including health development plans, health development White Paper, decision-making references, and drafts of local health rules and regulations.

International exchange

In recent years our School has strengthened international academic exchange and cooperation with medical institutions from different countries and regions including the United States, Canada, Australia, Sweden, Taiwan and Hong Kong. Our School has maintained close contact, exchange and cooperation on discipline construction, teaching and education, talent cultivation and scientific research with Karolinska Institutet, John Hopkins University, University of South Carolina, Boston University, Trinity Western University, University of Melbourne and Queensland University of Technology. Our School has reached agreements with Queensland University of Technology on the “4+2” joint-training program (bachelor degree and master degree), with University of South Carolina on the “3+2” joint-training program (bachelor degree and master degree), and with Trinity Western University on the “3+1+1” joint-training program (bachelor degree and master degree).

Career choice

Our School emphasizes on the training of students’ social core competence. When addressing the teaching quality, our School stresses the training of students’ humanistic quality, independent self-management ability and social practice ability. The employment rates of undergraduates remain around 95%, and the employment rates of graduates continue to be 100%. Our graduates mostly work for health administrative departments, medical insurance management departments, and management departments in medical and health institutions. Our graduates have developed in an all-round way morally, intellectually and physically, have high quality and solid theoretical basis, and are well received by different employees. There are undergraduates pursuing further studies in well-known universities abroad every year.