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The Center offers two 12-credit certificates in consumer health advocacy. Both certificates are designed to enhance existing professional expertise by adding valuable skills in patient advocacy and related knowledge of health systems. The course of study is the same for both certificates and combines applied health advocacy training, an introduction to health systems and health care delivery, and elective course work in one of three areas (law, regulations and ethics; health economics; or policy, management and public health). Today, as health systems grow more and more complex, health consumers - individually and collectively - increasingly turn to adept advocates to help them navigate medical, legal, employment, financial and psychosocial issues, and improve the systems and instruments that support health care access and quality. This Certificate will provide health professional and other students:
A guiding principle of the certificate is that consumer perspectives must be included in any health care performance improvement initiative. Graduates with a Consumer Health Advocacy Certificate will demonstrate adaptability to the increased complexity of the consumer experience in health care and related sectors. |
The Consumer Health Advocacy Capstone Certificate is the certificate available for working professionals or non-traditional students who are not currently enrolled in a graduate or professional program at the UW-Madison, but have a B.A, or equivalent.
To apply, you must complete two applications:
General questions about Capstone administration should be directed to the Division of Continuing Studies at 608-263-6960, or e-mail info@dcs.wisc.edu. Specific questions about the Consumer Health Advocacy Capstone Certificate may be addressed to Aphra Mednick at amednick@wisc.edu.
The Consumer Health Advocacy Certificate is a complementary certificate available for all UW graduate students, and for professional students from the schools of nursing, pharmacy, medicine & public health, and law.
To participate, you must complete a Consumer Health Advocacy Certificate Declaration of Intention Form (PDF form). Questions about the Certificate may be addressed to Aphra Mednick at amednick@wisc.edu.
Participation in a certificate does not guarantee access to courses which meet program requirements. Many courses are "consent of instructor." For example, the Health Advocacy and Patient-Centered Care Clinical, requires an application.
There are no specific course prerequisites, but admitted students are required to meet with program advisers to select an appropriate mix of courses to satisfy the certificate requirements and complement their existing experience or disciplinary studies. Graduate and professional students are also encouraged to meet with advisers in their home discipline. All existing prerequisites for each individual course apply to Certificate students.
Health Advocacy students must each complete at least 12 credits of required coursework. Upon completion of these credits, students will submit a capstone paper or project to program advisers.
Students will complete coursework in 4 key areas:
For many students, some or all of these credits will meet requirements of their home disciplines resulting in fewer or no additional credits to the number required for core degrees.
Note: The courses listed represent applicable classes offered at UW-Madison as of Spring 2008. Some courses may no longer be available and new courses may meet criteria. New courses can be sent to Sarah Davis at sdavis2@wisc.edu for review.
Courses that may be taught in the late afternoon (after 3pm) are marked with LA, in the evening (after 4:30) with an E, on the weekend with a W, during the summer session with an S, and those that may be taught online, are marked OL. Consult the timetable each semester for specific scheduling information.
This hands-on clinical provides a foundational introduction to micro and macro advocacy skills and methods, patient-centered care, and interprofessional problem-solving. Students provide advocacy services to patients facing life-threatening and serious chronic illnesses.
*Some students satisfy this requirement through field placements or clerkships at the Center for Patient Partnerships and receive credit in their home discipline. For more information see Field/Clerkship Opportunities.
This requirement addresses advanced micro and macro advocacy education, continued exposure to consumer-centered principles, and advanced interprofessional teamwork.
One or more of the following courses, externships, field placements or an approved substitute:
*Some students satisfy part or all of this requirement through field placements or clerkships at the Center for Patient Partnerships and receive credit in their home discipline. For more information see Field/Clerkship Opportunities.
This area introduces students to fundamentals of U.S. health systems and health care delivery, historical and contemporary.
The following course or an approved substitute:
Law, Regulation, and Ethics
Courses in this elective area address fundamental substantive knowledge and critical thinking relevant to complex legal, regulatory, or ethical matters health advocates will face.
One or more of the following courses or an approved substitute:
Health Economics
Courses in this elective area address fundamental substantive knowledge and critical thinking regarding health care financing and economics.
Students who choose this elective are required to discuss their course selection with a Certificate Advisor and the chosen course faculty; standard pre-requisites apply.
One of the following courses or an approved substitute:
Policy, Management, or Public Health
Courses in this elective area address fundamental substantive knowledge and critical thinking regarding health policy, management, or public health issues.
One of the following courses or an approved substitute:
At the completion of coursework, students will complete a 20 page capstone paper or identified project on a Health Advocacy topic.
For more information about the Certificate, please contact the Center for Patient Partnerships at (608) 265-6267 or cpp@law.wisc.edu.
The Consumer Health Advocacy Certificate is a complementary certificate available for all UW graduate students, and for professional students from the schools of nursing, pharmacy, medicine & public health, and law. To view a brochure about this certificate, click here (PDF).
The Consumer Health Advocacy Capstone Certificate is a certificate available for working professionals or non-traditional students who are not currently enrolled in a graduate or professional program at the UW-Madison, but have a B.A, or equivalent. Are you thinking about a career change? Want to enhance your health care career? Desire advocacy skills to help yourself or others? This certificate may be just what you have been looking for. If you have already completed some of the coursework at another institution, or live a distance from Madison and would need to count non-UW credits towards this Certificate, it may be possible - email Aphra Mednick at amednick@wisc.edu about your situation. To view a brochure about this certificate, click here (PDF).
Yes! In the coursework section above, courses that may be taught in the late afternoon (after 3pm) are marked with LA, in the evening (after 4:30) with an E, on the weekend with a W, during the summer session with an S, and those that may be taught online, are marked OL. Consult the timetable each semester for specific scheduling information.
The Certificate can be completed in as little as one semester, full time (12 credits), during the Spring semester when the Consumer Issues in Health Care course is offered, and could be completed in 1 year (2 or 3 semesters) part time. The Consumer Health Advocacy and Patient-Centered Care Clinical is taught all year round, including the summer semester.
The Certificate is designed to complement existing expertise in health care. Graduates with a Consumer Health Advocacy Certificate will demonstrate adaptability to the increased complexity of the consumer experience in health care and related sectors. Since the certificate is very new, we do not have placement statistics at this time, but we will gather employment data from graduates.
Individualized patient advocacy is a new, and still largely undefined and unregulated, field. Most graduates with a Certificate will apply their advocacy knowledge to existing jobs, as opposed to exclusively providing patient advocacy - but certainly that is a possibility.
