Better Health Systems Lab

Health systems should strive to deliver high-quality, affordable preventive care and health services. The Better Health Systems Lab creates research and evidence-driven policy solutions, connecting researchers and students interested in U.S. and cross-national research on health systems improvement. The Lab draws upon the expertise of exceptional faculty and affiliates at Columbia University Medical Center units (including the Mailman School of Public Health, the College of Physicians and Surgeons, and the School of Nursing), and across Columbia University’s campus, linking Columbia to institutions in the United States and abroad.

Housed within the Department of Health Policy and Management at Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health, the Lab’s mission focuses on two core research priorities: the sustainability of health systems—both economically and politically—and the responsiveness of health systems to the needs of the public, professionals, and the changing technological landscape of healthcare.  Under the two umbrella themes, the Lab is especially focused on the following priority research areas:

  • Systematic monitoring and evaluation of legal and regulatory frameworks for health systems strengthening and emerging technologies  
  • Identifying successful governance structures, institutions, and multisector collaborations    
  • Patients and the public   
  • Cross-national learning and new roadmaps for policy reform     
  • Encouraging high-performing teams of health professionals

Launching the Better Health Systems Lab

The Better Health Systems Lab was established in 2017 by Miriam Laugesen and Sara Abiola after a department consultation exercise as well as input from a number of faculty at Mailman and at other institutions. The official launch will be in May 2018. In its startup phase, the Lab has already successfully created a hub for interdisciplinary research in the Department of Health Policy and Management. When it is fully established in 2018, the Lab will draw on the best policy, legal, managerial, and social science research from across Columbia and around the world to foster and support sustainable and responsive health systems.

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