Dr. Jennifer Pope, EMBA’25, is a physician administrator at Dartmouth Health in Lebanon, NH, where she has specialized in emergency medicine since 2020. A trusted leader in her field, she has been recognized as a Top Doctor by New Hampshire Magazine since 2023.
At a midpoint in her career, Pope wanted to challenge herself by thinking beyond her existing knowledge from academic and non-profit hospital settings and gain fresh perspectives: “I recognized that to better support my team and optimize care quality and efficiency, I needed a deeper understanding of the financial dynamics of health care and how physician leaders can influence the system.”
She first learned about the Heller EMBA program from Dr. Michael Lynch, EMBA’17, the chief medical officer at Alice Peck Day Memorial Hospital, where she serves as medical director of the emergency department. “The health care industry is really changing, and, as physicians, we are struggling to provide the care that we want for patients due to issues like lack of access, crowding and hospital boarding,” says Pope, who entered the Heller program in 2024. “My goal was to learn how to navigate and challenge the existing health care business model in ways that ultimately benefit patients.”
Before beginning the online portion of the semester, Pope was introduced to the program and her fellow students at the first of four 10-day residential sessions on the Heller campus. “I had been out of school for 20 years at that point, so it was a bit of a shock,” she recalls, “but a few days into the session, I began to find my rhythm. I quickly learned that while hard work was essential, it was equally important to engage with my outstanding classmates, make time for exercise and get some sleep.”
Unlike a traditional MBA program, Heller’s physician-focused coursework provided practical, specialized training, pushing Pope to think differently and connecting her with other physician leaders across the country. Since completing the program, Pope says she has a much deeper understanding of the financial background of health care systems, especially those that are not-for-profit, and has gained the skills necessary to negotiate, advocate for resources and ultimately help physicians and general practitioners care for patients. “My goal was to learn those skills in addition to the entire curriculum around leadership development and conflict resolution,” Pope says, noting that the combination of the two has helped her to feel more confident in her ability to lead in the health care setting. “The program helps you in so many aspects of your life as a physician and administrator,” she says. “This experience has been truly transformative, and I’m eager to apply the knowledge I’ve gained to enhance emergency care delivery at Dartmouth Health.”