Robert E. Burke, Ph.D.

Robert E. Burke is the Gordon A. Friesen Professor of Health Care Administration and Chair of the Department of Health Services Management and Leadership. He holds a joint appointment in the Department of Health Policy.

Professor Burke is a medical sociologist and a nationally known expert in long-term care, with extensive experience in developing, evaluating and implementing health care policy and managing multidisciplinary professional staff. For more than 25 years, he has conducted and directed health service research, payment and evaluation projects, and is thoroughly versed in the policy and program issues of Medicare, Medicaid and other public and private third-party payor systems. As Department Chair, Professor Burke oversees a well-known, well-respected faculty and a newly approved curriculum that stresses the "skills of business and the values of health care." In his capacity as Director of the Wertlieb Institute, Dr. Burke revitalized a national resource dedicated to preparing leaders to meet the challenges of providing quality services to aging and disabled individuals, and to promoting interdisciplinary education, dialogue and research in long-term care management. Prior to joining the faculty at SPHHS in 2002, Dr. Burke held senior research positions at the Institute of Medicine, the General Accounting Office (now the Government Accountability Office), the Health and Retirement Funds of the United Mine Workers and the Pepper Commission. For the past decade, he has worked with the Health Care Financing Administration (now The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services), directing the design of new prospective payment systems for post-acute care.

Master of Arts (Sociology), Boston College, 1970
Doctor of Philosophy (Medical Sociology), University of Florida, 1977

HSML 6237-Managing the Skilled Nursing Facility, Department of Health Services Management and Leadership
HSML 6236-Aging and Disability: Needs and Services, Department of Health Services Management and Leadership
HSML 6203-Introduction to Health Management, Department of Health Services Management and Leadership

Dr. Burke focuses on applying research and developing and evaluating demonstration projects and policies that address real-world challenges, such as the nursing shortage in nursing homes, and other health-care workforce issues. He served as an expert consultant on statistical health care modeling for the VA Care Commission, testing an actuarial model for predicting capital demands for services.

Professor Burke currently uses his management skills to serve the community as a board member of the Boston College National Alumni Association. Among many other activities, he has served on the board of the Montgomery County chapter of the American Heart Association, co-chairing its major fundraising activity, and as Director of Volunteers for the Taste of Bethesda. He participates actively in the American Public Health Association, currently chairing its Gerontological Health Section.