About

The Institute for Health Policy and Practice (IHPP) is an applied research institute located within the College of Health and Human Services at the University of New Hampshire. In 1999, the State of New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), the Dartmouth Medical School (DMS) and the University of New Hampshire collaboratively launched the IHPP as vehicle to conduct applied research, as well as provide education and technical assistance to improve the health of and healthcare received by residents of New Hampshire.

Examples of early IHPP work included an evaluation of welfare reform in New Hampshire, a statewide effort to improve local community access to and use of health data, development of a suicide prevention curriculum for social workers, and provision of technical assistance and consulting services to New Hampshire’s Medicaid Program.

Since these early years, the staff, work and scope of IHPP has grown exponentially. IHPP currently employs 24 staff members, and its project work comprises five main focus areas of:

Annual Report

The Institute for Health Policy and Practice is pleased to release its 2022 Annual report. We are grateful to our collaborators, stakeholders, and partners for their shared commitment to our work. 

2023 annual Report

Our Vision

In the next five years, the Institute for Health Policy and Practice (IHPP) will be a state and national leader for its work to assure integrated excellence across all systems to yield optimal health for all people.

IHPP looks to the Institute of Medicine to define health as “a positive concept emphasizing personal resources as well as physical capabilities. Improving health is a shared responsibility of health care providers, public health officials, and a variety of other actors in the community who can contribute to the well-being of individuals and populations.”

We align our work with that definition of health.

Our Values

  • Using reliable and actionable data to make decisions
  • Developing reliable and replicable methods to verify our work
  • Engaging new and existing partners for maximum participation in the work to improve population health
  • Coordinating our work among the numerous stakeholder groups impacting population health
  • Being innovative and responsive to the changing state and national health policy
  • Contributing to policy development and health systems change through practice-based and applied research
  • Disseminating our findings to allow state, regional, and national  partners to share in our learning 

Contact

Institute for Health Policy and Practice
Hewitt Hall, Suite 202
4 Library Way
Durham, NH 03824
Phone: (603) 862-4588
Email: IHPP.unh@unh.edu

IHPP Concord Location
10 White Street
Concord, NH 03301

    Founder, Ned (Edgar) Helms

    Ned Helms, former Director of the Institute for Health Policy and Practice at UNH, retired on May 15, 2015. Ned was the institute’s founding director in 2001. He arrived at UNH as an "army of one." For 14 years he provided leadership for the institute by overseeing its continued growth and direction, investigating and pursuing the development of research and demonstration projects, and facilitating collaborative linkages with health and health policy organizations throughout New Hampshire and New England. 

    Give to the Ned Helms scholarship fund