Master of Administration in Justice Involved Care Curriculum

The Master of Administration in Justice-Involved Care (MAJIC) program consists of 33 credit hours that enable degree recipients to be proficient in the community-focused work that undergirds the social mission of Morehouse School of Medicine aligning with accreditation standards set forth by the Council on Education for Correctional Health. Additional requirements include practice and integrated learning, that provides a comprehensive hands on experience to become leaders in the field of criminal justice.

Public Health Intersects Criminal Justice

Specific areas of instruction include individual assessment of client profile using a standardized assessment tool, development of group/cohort profiles to ensure that relevant data are used to guide strategic, tactical program development and interventions, eradicating a one-size fits all programming framework. Additional program cornerstones will include fiscal issues, equitable access to intra- and extra- institutional rehabilitative programs to strengthen the ability of individuals to reenter community with both improved health and greater knowledge of where and how to access supportive resources.

Foundational Competencies of the Program

  • PROGRAM DESIGN: Design population-based services that meet the unique and individualized needs via social determinants of the justice-impacted individual, including race, gender, sexual orientation, mental health, educational level, family support, child-support encumbrances, and other affective indices.
  • POLICY: Address regulatory, marketplace and public policy issues that affect one’s ability to meet incarceration and post-incarceration barriers, e.g., the loss of Medicaid, Medicare, child support, mental health, collateral consequences and health care coverage post-incarceration to include access to behavioral and oral health care.
  • COMMUNICATION and DISSEMINATION: Develop a resource directory to assist returning citizens in navigating the barriers while transiting into the community.
  • EVALUATION: Assess city, county, state, and federal levels of support and determine the degree to which needs of returning citizens are met/unmet.
  • LEADERSHIP: Ensure leaders within the system have the experiences, sensitivities, and acumen to assess issues that continue to oppress individuals being served.
  • APPLICATION: Students will apply skills and knowledge in the criminal justice field through supervised experiences.
  • INTEGRATION: Students will integrate criminal justice and public health theories and skills acquired from coursework, practicum, and other learning activities to address the reduction of recidivism and promote social justice.

Semester I Term I (8 weeks)

  • Introduction to Correctional Healthcare System - 3 credit hours
  • Foundation of Health & Social Justice- 3 credit hours

Semester I Term II (8 weeks)

  • Service Development Assessment - 2 credit hours
  • Informed Decision-Making Using Data Driven Methods - 3 credit hours

Semester II Term I (8 weeks)

  • An Integrated Approach to Understanding Addictive Behavior 3 credit hours
  • Demographics of Health Status and Comparative Analysis to Community Health- 2 credit hours

Semester II Term II (8 weeks)

  • Rehabilitative and Reentry Service Design and Implementation- 3 credit hours
  • Policies and Regulations that Impact Pre- and Post-Release - 2 credit hours

Semester III Term I (8 weeks)

  • Leadership in the Criminal Justice System- 3 credit hours
  • Finance of Health and Supportive Social and Educational Strategies- 3 credit hours

Semester III Term II (8 weeks)

  • Applied Practice Experience- 3 credit hours
  • Integrated Learning Experience- 3 credit hours

Total to degree completion: 33 credit hours

Core Courses and Descriptions 

Introduction to Correctional Health Care (3 credit hours) is an overview of the U.S. criminal justice system and examine the policies and structures that create and sustain the correctional health care system; explore the components that frame the correctional standard of health care; and evaluate challenges faced by correctional health care professionals. 

Foundations of Health and Social Justice (3 credit hours) Introduces students to the core principles of health equity research. Covers topics such as defining health equity, engaging community and policy stakeholders, patient-centeredness, cultural competence, and dissemination of research findings. Content will identify various geographic, cultural, and social contexts where health inequities occur. 

Service Development and Assessment (2 credit hours) This course will explore comprehensive health and social service needs, as related to social determinants of health (SDoH), to facilitate individual’s rehabilitation while incarcerated and planning for reentry. The goal is to develop programs that generate and address a Profile of Individual Needs (PIN), considering race, ethnicities, gender, age, sexual identity, legal and regulatory barriers, and chronic health conditions.  Healthcare coverage and closed loop social systems during the return to the community journey will be discussed.   

Informed Decision-Making Using Data-Driven Methods (3 credit hours) Healthcare leaders can only make informed decisions if they are given the opportunity to synthesize a wide variety of quality data related to the issue at hand. Students will examine techniques to transform data into the information needed to make critical decisions, considering regulations, laws, institutional policies and the needs of administrators, managers, providers, and patients. Students will examine the types of data available, identify the most frequently used data sources and elements for health decision-making, learn how to access data sources, and apply them to the decision-making process using a case study approach. Students will also develop skills for presenting data to external and internal stakeholders. 

An Integrated Approach to Understanding Addictive Behavior (3 credit hours) This course will introduce students to the of addiction and the role of the brain, genetics, age, gender, and other factors that contribute to the development of addictive behaviors. An overview of various addictions not limited to substances, but also addictions such as food, gambling, prescription drugs and sex will be explored. Participants will also review the integration of mental health treatment and the impact that undiagnosed, and untreated mental health conditions may have on an individual which often times lead to suicide. Participants will learn best practices for advocacy and case management for special populations as well as utilizing community resources. 

Demographics of Health Status and Comparative Analysis to Community Health (2 credit hours) Comparative analysis of health morbidity and mortality of incarcerated individuals in overall primary, behavioral health, oral health, and chronic conditions including PTSD as roadmap for internal and external network-collaboration and health services delivery to include health payment coverage upon release to interdict recidivism related to lack of access to health and other needed services. 

Rehabilitative and Reentry Service Design and Implementation (3 credit hours) Life This course will prepare Life Coaches and Peer Support Network Developers in providing job training options, educational programs, resource tool development, housing assistance, and establishment of health care homes. Enrollment in public programs such as Medicaid, Medicare, medication assistance substance use disorder interventions, TANF, SOAR and other programs will be incorporated as an integral component of both incarceration/release readiness and upon release. Prison Industrial Complex (PIC) participants and outlets will be engaged as sites for employment, given the benefit gained via inmate production of goods that are sold by these industries at free market prices. 

Policies and Regulations that Impact Pre- and Post-Release (2 credit hours) This course will provide an overview of Regulations and other policies that impact care behind the bars and such as Ban the Box, Pell Grants, felony convictions and eligibility for public housing as determined by local public housing authorities, driver’s license restrictions, among others. 

Leadership in the Criminal Justice System (3 credit hours) in this course, students will learn to develop a tiered cadre of flexible training options for executives in the criminal justice system to meet team needs (e.g., life coaches, dental therapists, physician’s assistants, among others) while concomitantly reducing health costs via use of a diversified health care delivery team. Leadership development, skills refinement to promote and support systems thinking and action. 

Financial Analysis of Correctional Operations (3 credit hours) Analyze finance principles and strategies within the institution, identifying cost-conserving methodologies, (e.g., agribusiness, private industry relationships, and generation of volunteer car). Analysis of current fiscal drivers and model development to align costs and cost-savings (i.e. staffing turnover, training, and technology development) for reallocation into more beneficial activities (e.g., staff retention, educational programs, family and child visitation centers, communication encumbrances), and costs for health care (e.g., oral health care). 

Description of Other Required Courses 

Applied Practice Experience (3 credit hours) Students complete a worksite experience (40 hours) at a correctional facility or organization that provides services to these entities. Students apply classroom theory and competencies to practical situations in the field. In addition, students will examine and access three individual focused case studies (i.e. women, men, children, transgender) to further understand challenges faced by justice involved population. This course also helps students identify needed job skills and possible work opportunities in their area of specialization. 

APE Learning Objectives - Students will be able to: 

  • Apply correctional health theory, knowledge, and skills in a practice setting. 
  • Complete a defined project(s) in an area of correctional health practice including core correctional health functions such as needs assessment, program planning, program evaluation, policy development, educational campaign, or applied research. 
  • Relate principles of correctional health practice - organizational structure, local and organizational politics, program administration, community relationships, program coordination - to their defined project(s). 
  • Demonstrate skills and knowledge in an area of interest not covered in depth elsewhere in their educational plan. 
  • Demonstrate competence in a correctional health practice area(s). 
  • Demonstrate leadership, teamwork, communication skills and creativity in the development of a correctional health practice activity. 

Integrated Learning Experience (3 credit hours) This course provides an opportunity for students to synthesize and integrate the knowledge base and competencies acquired in q1`coursework and practicum and demonstrate this achievement through writing and presenting a thesis. The Capstone Project is supervised by a committee comprised of at least one faculty member, one correctional health practitioner, and an expert in the student’s field of study. Faculty use this experience as a mechanism to evaluate whether the student has mastered the body of knowledge and competencies needed for correctional health research and practice. Prior to graduation, each student must present their thesis in oral and written form. 

ILE Learning Objectives – Student will be able to: 

  • Demonstrate their ability to critically examine selected issues related to correctional health 
  • Review relevant scholarly and professional literature 
  • Write an analysis based on that review, and 
  • Design and implement an original research study that contributes to the knowledge base of the correctional health profession.