October 07, 2024 • By The UCI Paul Merage School of Business
Alethea Caldwell ’74 has pledged to donate $150,000 to the Merage School’s Center for Health Care Management and Policy to support research in the business of health care.
Specifically, the donation will go towards supporting students pursuing their PhD in quantitative research of subjects like health policy, the health industry and health care financing and management. The research will preferably be focused on Orange County or California.
Caldwell hopes the funds will help lead to increased knowledge of important components of health care that haven’t been thoroughly studied.
“Health care is bereft of outcomes research and useful measurements of improvement in quality of care for both individuals and populations,” Caldwell said.
The subject is personal for Caldwell. Her family and friends have faced negative health consequences, and she spent her career trying to build comprehensive systems of care at all levels. An advocate for patients, Caldwell helped deliver personalized service to patients and their families, and she supported more flexible and innovative health care financial and payment options.
“My motivation was to give financial support to scholars in gratitude for the excellent education I received from the graduate school of business at UCI,” Caldwell said.
Currently, the Center for Health Care Management and Policy provides a number of important services in the community, primarily serving as a source of crucial knowledge and information for leaders in the industry. The center’s primary annual event, the Health Care Forecast Conference, serves as a forum for academics, business leaders and government officials to discuss economic and political issues that impact health care. The faculty associated with the center provide innovative educational programs for health care professionals and conduct critical research into the national health system. Students can also earn a certificate in leadership for health care management from the center, which provides them with the tools to understand the evolving industry.
The donation and presence of Caldwell on the center’s board will aid in the expansion of the center’s influence. Caldwell is excited to offer her support to the mission and vision of Director Dr. Hope Schau, who has been a groundbreaking leader in innovation, marketing and entrepreneurship. Caldwell’s background in the health industry sectors of finance, policy, public health and management are a critical asset for the center’s leadership.
“The Merage School of Business is very fortunate to have Dr. Schau join the faculty,” Caldwell said. “It gives me confidence that the donation will be wisely used and will lead to continuing support.”
Dr. Schau said that Caldwell has brought an important perspective to the Merage School and the center. She’s helped guide the school towards moving past health care economics and policy to thinking more about the business of health care. Caldwell has provided insight into ensuring better health care delivery and improving outcomes across populations while reducing disparities, Dr. Schau said.
“Alethea’s support of the center is reinvigorating the research that’s related to health care at the business school,” Dr. Schau said. “I think that’s important in building those bridges from the health sciences school and the business school.”
With the donation from Caldwell, PhD students will be able to research a number of important health care dilemmas. For example, they could study how to eradicate health disparities. Solving social problems through health care has been a passion for Caldwell.
“She was a pioneering woman when a lot of women weren’t really at the table,” Dr. Schau said of Caldwell. “She was at the forefront of figuring out how to better deliver health care.”
Associate Director of Communications
jrotheku@uci.edu