How to Organize and Finance Health Systems
Learning Outcomes
At the end of this course, participants shall be able to:
- explain the main types of the organization of the health care system
- understand the main elements of managed competition in health care markets
- know key indicators for comparison of health systems (e.g. those used by OECD)
- describe plausible sources of observed variations in health care
- explain the incentives created by the organization of the health care system
Topics/Content
This course will cover how health systems can be and are organized in the rich and the less rich countries and how to compare their “performance”. The course will cover a variety of these organizational aspects and focus on the details of the Swiss system which is regulated using the principle of managed competition. The course also covers basic economic principles of decision making. Between the first day in week 1 and the second day two weeks later, the students will work on 3 selected case studies and will present results from their work on their assigned case study.
Activities / Program
Preparative reading
Input via lectures
Case study and its presentation
Basic information
| Number | E046.232.25 |
|---|---|
| Dates |
|
| Times | 09:15-16:30 |
| Course location | Institute of Social and Preventive Medicine ISPM room 216, second floor Situation plan |
| Lead | Professor Marcel Zwahlen |
| Seats max. | 20 people |
| Course language | English |
| Registration deadline | 15.09.2025 |
| Format | Individual event from Public Health Sciences Course Program You will receive a certificate of attendance. |
| Governing Unit |
Faculty of Medicine University of Bern Institute of Social and Preventive Medicine (ISPM) |
| ECTS info |
1 ECTS point will be credited for this course including four sessions For an accreditation of the ECTS, a minimum of 80% attendance and active participation incl. completion of assignments and assessments are required. |
Target audience
All PhD students, Post-docs, clinicians and public health practitioners interested in the topic.
Special
Prerequisites: Familiarity with epidemiological concepts and demographic key indicators
Course takes place every second year.
Application and admission procedure
A tertiary education degree is required. The program manager decides on the final admission. Priority is given to PhD students
Application process: You are requested to enroll online. Seats will be allocated according to date of enrolment. Three weeks before the course/workshop at the latest, the administration will decide and inform about running or cancelling the course/workshop.
Costs
Amount still open
Administrative / Payment modalities
Registration fees are waived for PhD students of the University of Bern who commit to the whole course attendance. To avoid being invoiced, it is mandatory that you indicate your institute and the matriculation number upon registration for the course. Please note cancellation regulations below.
Course fees for other participant categories:
PostDocs Uni Bern CHF 100
Other participants Uni Bern CHF 300
Participants other academic institutions 600
Other participants CHF 840
Participants completing the entire PHS Course Program benefit from a reduction; overview course fees here.
Cancellation regulations
After the closing date for registrations, the organisers will decide whether the course can take place. The decision is based on the number of registrations.
Contact
University of Bern
Public Health Sciences Course Program
c/o Institute of Social and Preventive Medicine (ISPM)
Mittelstrasse 43
3012 Bern
Switzerland
Tel: +41 31 684 34 04