The Division of Health Policy and Management at the University of Minnesota School of Public Health and Allina Health are seeking a post-doctoral researcher to join the research evaluation team for LifeCourse, an intervention designed to improve late life care for patients in Allina Health and its partner organizations. The start date is as soon as January 1, 2013 and the funding is for two years. LifeCourse is a multi-faceted intervention to improve outcomes for patients with advanced or end-stage cancer, heart failure, and/or dementia whose condition could lead to death within two years. The intervention is designed to assist patients, their families, and caregivers with managing the burdens and challenges of late life care by providing strong supportive relationships with the care systems, with integrating the patient's biography and story into care, with assisting decision making, and with coordinating care. The successful applicant will be joining an evaluation team that includes experts in aging, health economics, organizational research, care coordination, outcomes measurement, qualitative and quantitative methods and an implementation team that includes experts in palliative care, late life care, and health system organization. The successful applicant will be expected to collaborate in developing the understanding of LifeCourse's causal mechanisms using a realistic evaluation approach that examines how context influences the functioning of the causal mechanisms, developing a research design that assesses Life Course functioning, participating in the research implementing the design, and taking a leadership role in drafting papers based on the research. Not only will the applicant be expected to be a strong team member and contribute to the evaluation, but the applicant will be expected to develop his/her own unique contribution in collaboration with the team. The position will be located in the Division of Health Policy and Management at the University of Minnesota and will work closely with Allina Health.

The Division has four active teaching programs with a combined enrollment of over 300 students, including an MPH in Public Health Administration and Policy, a full-time Master of Healthcare Administration (MHA) program and an Executive MHA program, and MS and PhD programs in Health Services Research, Policy and Administration. The Division is one of four in the School of Public Health, which is located in a large Academic Health Center and enjoys close working relations with a variety of health care programs and organizations locally and across the country, as well as governmental agencies at the local, state and national levels. More information about the Division is available at: http://www.hpm.umn.edu. Allina Health is a major health system in Minnesota and western Wisconsin. Allina Health is dedicated to the prevention and treatment of illness and enhancing the greater health of individuals, families and communities throughout Minnesota and western Wisconsin. A not-for-profit health care system, Allina Health cares for patients from beginning to end-of-life through its: 90+ clinics, 11 hospitals, 15 pharmacies, specialty medical services, including hospice care, oxygen and home medical equipment and emergency medical transportation. More information about Allina Health is available at http://www.allinahealth.org/ahs/aboutallina.nsf/.

This 12-month, 100% time appointment is annually renewable depending upon continued funding, has funding for a period of two years, and offers fringe benefits as defined for the post-doctoral associate position and in keeping with meeting specific eligibility requirements. Salary is based on experience and qualifications. The position is open until filled and application review begins immediately. Interested candidates should apply at http://employment.umn.edu/applicants/Central?quickFind=106528, where they will be asked to provide contact and demographic information, and a cover letter, CV and contact information for three references. E-mailed applications are not accepted. The University of Minnesota is an equal opportunity educator and employer.

The successful candidate will extend the capabilities of the evaluation team and will have a PhD, MD/MPH, MD/MS, or equivalent degree in a field related to the LifeCourse project, such as health services research, medical sociology, aging, palliative care, social psychology, or organizational behavior. Strong oral and written communication and teamwork skills are essential, as is a demonstrated ability to develop and conduct research. The successful candidate will have expertise in a substantive area of knowledge related to how the LifeCourse intervention works and in a methodological area related to assessing its functioning. Examples of relevant substantive expertise include patient-focused understandings of illness management, aging, end of life and palliative care, and care coordination. Examples of methodological skills include outcomes research, experience with analyzing quantitative and/or qualitative data, survey research, causal modeling, scale development, and trajectory modeling.