August 2026 | Management

The Business Education Most Physicians Never Get

As a pediatric cardiologist, Meryl Cohen spends much of her professional life focused on the health and well-being of children. But as associate dean for faculty development at the Perelman School of Medicine and an associate chief in her division, she also thinks about the broader forces that shape how health care is delivered.

For years, however, one area remained largely outside her professional purview: the business and economics of health care.

“As an academic physician, I haven’t had to engage deeply with the business side of health care,” Cohen says. “There are people whose job it is to navigate the financial and insurance issues that shape how care is delivered. I realized how much I didn’t know about that part of the system — and how valuable it would be to understand it better.”

That realization led Cohen to Wharton Executive Education’s Health Care Leadership and Management. She initially attended with other physicians in mind, thinking she might recommend the program to them. But she soon found herself gaining insights that were directly relevant to her own work.

“I thought it would be a valuable opportunity to step outside my usual perspective and understand the broader forces shaping health care,” she says. “And I was right. I came away with a much deeper understanding of the health care ecosystem and the many factors that influence the care we provide.”

Stepping Outside the Clinical Bubble

One of Cohen's biggest takeaways was seeing how much of the health care system operates beyond the bubble of clinical practice. Physicians focus intensely on the patient and the medical decisions required to provide the best possible care — but those decisions don’t happen in isolation.

Cohen was particularly struck by sessions exploring the changing health care environment, access and inequality, private equity, behavioral economics, and strategic agility. Each offered a different perspective on the forces influencing the system in which she and her patients operate.

“One of the most eye-opening parts of the program was gaining a deeper understanding of the barriers that prevent people from accessing the care they need,” she says. “As clinicians, we see the patient in front of us, but there are so many forces outside the exam room that influence whether someone can actually receive that care.”

That broader view has proven particularly valuable in Cohen’s work. She and her colleagues routinely encounter situations in which insurance companies deny coverage or determine that a treatment isn’t medically necessary. The program didn’t make those decisions any less frustrating, she says, but it helped her better understand the forces behind them.

“Understanding the larger health care landscape doesn’t mean I agree with every decision that is made,” Cohen says. “But it gives me a much better sense of where those decisions come from and helps me think more strategically on behalf of my patients.”

“Ultimately, this isn’t about learning the economics of health care for its own sake,” she says. “It’s about knowing the system well enough to advocate for the best possible experience and outcomes for our patients.”

A Classroom Full of New Perspectives

As a physician educator and leader, Cohen is accustomed to being the person at the front of the classroom. At Wharton, she returned to the learner's seat. “It’s easy forget how energizing it is to be in a classroom and learn something completely new,” she says.

For Cohen, the immersive format was part of the appeal. “Having five days dedicated to learning, without the distractions of my usual responsibilities, was incredibly valuable,” she says. “It allowed me to really engage with the material, thinking deeply about what I was learning.”

Just as important was the chance to learn alongside physicians in leadership roles, health care administrators, and executives from across the industry. The program’s balance of expert instruction with discussion and group activities encourages participants to work and learn together. “When you’re immersed in your own professional environment, it’s easy to forget there’s more than one perspective on any given challenge,” Cohen says. “Hearing how my classmates think about and resolve issues gave me a much better sense of how all of these pieces fit together.”

Bringing the Bigger Picture Back to Medicine

Cohen's experience also changed the way she thinks about medical education. “Physicians need to understand the environment in which they practice,” she says. "Teaching the economics of health care, the role of insurance, the forces driving innovation, and the business decisions that shape the system in medical school would give clinicians a perspective they can carry throughout their careers.”

She now plans to bring that wider context back to her own teaching. “Sharing a broader perspective allows me to help my trainees think beyond the immediate clinical issue,” she says. “Whether we’re talking about drug approvals, medical devices, or new technologies, there are complex economic and business considerations that influence how innovations reach patients. Understanding those forces helps us think more thoughtfully about the system as a whole.”

But the application goes well beyond those entering the field. “Whether you’re early in your career and thinking about future leadership opportunities, in the middle of your career and considering a new direction, or an experienced leader who wants to broaden your perspective, there is tremendous value in understanding the forces that shape health care,” she says.

For Cohen, that is ultimately the value of stepping outside one’s area of expertise. The goal isn’t to turn physicians into economists or business executives. It is to help them see the system in which they work more clearly — and better understand the forces that affect their patients and their organizations.

---

Share This

Subscribe to the Wharton@Work RSS Feed