Pharmaceutical Assessment, Management & Policy Program

Master of Public Health degree students at Boston University, particularly those who are interested in careers in or related to the pharmaceutical industry, are eligible to apply for the Pharmaceutical Assessment, Management & Policy Program (PAMP). The program, one of few in the country, is directed by Professor Lewis Kazis, an international expert in pharmaceutical policy and research. Dr. Kazis is also director of the Center for Assessment of Pharmaceutical Practices (CAPP), one of the School’s major research centers. The PAMP program is run by CAPP as part of the center’s educational mission. Professor Warren Kaplan serves as International Health Coordinator for the PAMP program.

The PAMP program provides students with an understanding of the business and regulatory environment in which pharmaceuticals are developed and distributed, and with a set of analytic skills for addressing critical issues in the management of pharmaceuticals including health outcomes and quality of life, cost-effectiveness, and prescribing patterns of providers.

The PAMP program includes a range of coursework in pharmaceuticals to give students an exposure to contemporary problems from both domestic and global perspectives. It prepares students for positions in both the public and private sectors, including employment in state, federal, and international agencies that interface with the pharmaceutical industry, and careers in pharmaceutical/biotech companies, pharmaceutical benefit management companies, consulting firms, and contracting research organizations.

Acceptance into the PAMP Program

Students interested in joining the PAMP program submit a PAMP entry form to Dr. Kazis. The program is geared to full-time students who enter the MPH program in the fall semester, though other options are possible. If a student has no prior experience in the area of pharmaceuticals, the director may suggest that the student take additional courses in order to acquire the knowledge and skills necessary to succeed in the program.

Goal of the PAMP Program

The goal of the PAMP program is to provide students with the knowledge and expertise to address pharmaceutical issues from a public health perspective.

Objectives of the PAMP Program

At completion of the PAMP program, the student should be able to:

  1. Identify pharmaceutical issues and priorities in the context of public health;
  2. Discuss the range of policy and program interventions used to address pharmaceutical issues in public health, including positive and negative experiences of different organizations and countries in implementing interventions;
  3. Participate in the design and implementation of policy and program interventions to address pharmaceutical issues in a public health context;
  4. Evaluate policy and program interventions to assess the impact of interventions; and
  5. Contribute to the design, conduct, and interpretation of research on pharmaceutical-related topics.

Course Requirements:

Students accepted into the PAMP program are required to complete all MPH degree requirements, concentration requirements, and PAMP requirements. The program is geared to full-time students who enter in the fall semester. Not all students will be able to complete the PAMP and MPH requirements in three semesters or within 48 credits. The PAMP requirements are as follows; students must earn a B in all classes:

  • PM 742 Introduction to PAMP
  • EP 745 Pharmacoepidemiology* or
  • EP 830 Drug Epidemiology*
  • IH 820 Global Issues in Pharmaceutical Policy* or
  • PM 811 Health Services Research Methods*
  • PM 807 Introduction to Cost Effectiveness Analysis* or
  • PM 855 Cost Effectiveness Analysis*
  • PH 975 PAMP Practicum
  • PAMP Seminar

*Course has additional prerequisites

Other electives that can be credited toward the PAMP curriculum include:

  • BS 722 Design and Conduct of Clinical Trials (4 cr)
  • BS 810 Meta-Analysis for Public Health and Medical Research
  • EP 765 Epidemiology of Vaccine-Preventable Diseases
  • IH 803 Antimicrobial Resistance: Facing a Future without Effective Medicines
  • IH 854 From Data to Dashboards: Building Excel Skills to Support Health Program Decisions (2 cr)
  • IH 885 Global Trade, Intellectual Property, and Public Health (2 cr)
  • IH 890 Quantitative Methods and Modeling for Public Health Decision Making (4 cr)

PAMP Final Requirement

The final requirement for PAMP will be fulfilled through participation in the PAMP seminar, an unregistered and required seminar series in the Fall and Spring semesters, a final paper, and a presentation based on the student’s practicum experience and paper.

The Program Director will document that students have successfully completed PAMP, and the student’s final transcript from Boston University will reflect completion of this program within the MPH degree. Students must complete the MPH degree to complete PAMP successfully.

Contact Information

Directors
Lewis E. Kazis, ScD, Professor, Health Policy & Management Department
lek@bu.edu

International Health Coordinator
Warren Kaplan, PhD, JD, MPH, Assistant Professor, International Health Department
wak@bu.edu