Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center
School of Medicine
Department of Health Services Research and Management
3601 4 th St., Rm 1C165A, Lubbock, TX 79430
EDUCATION ACHIEVEMENT
Phone: (806) 743-6983
Fax: (806)743-1292
Email: somktx@ttuhsc.edu
 Ph.D. Economics (Health Economics and Econometrics) – the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill,
05/1999.
 M.S. Economics (Finance) – Southwest University of Finance and Economics at Chengdu, P.R.China,
07/1995.
 B.A. Economics (Banking and Finance) – Southwest University of Finance and Economics at Chengdu,
P.R.China, 07/1992.
EXPERIENCE
Current Position
 Assistant professor, Department of Health Services Research and Management, Texas Tech University Health
Sciences Center. Performing research on health services, submitting grant proposals and research papers, designing syllabus, supervising research assistant, advising graduate student. 6/1999-present.
 Research Associate, Center for the Study of Regional Economic and Industrial Development, Texas Tech
University. Participating in West Texas Health Care Delivery Initiative and performing research on the related topics. 09/1999-present.
Teaching
 Instructor, Department of Health Services Research and Management, TTUHSC. Teaching MS graduate students: Data Management. 08/00-present.
 Instructor, Department of Health Services Research and Management, TTUHSC. Teaching MS graduate students: Health Economics Research. 08/00-present.
 Instructor, School of Medicine, TTUHSC. Teaching medical students: Assessing Medical Evidence: Medical
Statistics and Epidemiology. 01/00-05/00.
 Teaching Assistant (Instructor), Department of Economics, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
Teaching undergraduate courses: Introduction to Economics, Intermediate Microeconomics, Statistics for
Economics and Business. 06/1997-05/1999.
Other Research Activities
 Research Assistant, School of Pharmacy, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Statistical analyses,
SAS programming, STATA programming, survey management. 05/1997-01/1999.
 Research Assistant, Department of Economics, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Literature review, statistical analyses and research reporting. 08/1995-05/1997.

Private Sector Experience
 Manager Assistant, Bank of China, Sichuan Branch, various departments. Banking system management and various accounting tasks. 05/1992-06/1992.
 Project Manager, Bank of China, Sichuan Branch, Department of Foreign Currency Loan. Project evaluation, data analysis and general clerical work. 01/1991-06/1991.
HONORS, AND DISTINCTIONS
 1999 Postgraduate Best Paper in the Economic, Social and Administrative Sciences. Awarded by the
Academy of Pharmaceutical Research and Science of the American Pharmaceutical Association, San Antonio
GRANTS AND CONTRACTS
 Principal Investigator. “Innovative Market Responses to Pharmaceutical Cost and Access”. Pharmaceutical
Research and Manufacturers of America. 06/07/00-07/05/00. $10,663. Completed.
 Co-investigator. “NorthStar Independent Assessment”. Texas Department of MHMR. 07/00-06/01. $79,528.
Completed.
 Co-investigator. “The Texas Tech 5000”. Administration on Aging. 09/00-08/01. $826,448. Active.
 Co-investigator. “Hispanic and Rural Elders’ Satisfaction with Health Care”. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. 09/01-8/02. $99,968. Active.
 Co-investigator. “Center for Study of Rural Health Care Access”. Health Resources & Services
Administration. Pending. $1,989,067.
PUBLICATIONS

Xu K . Compensating Behaviors, Regret, and Heterogeneity in the Dynamics of Smoking Behavior. Social
Science & Medicine. 54:133-46, 2002.

Rohrer JE, Xu K , and Bickley L. Duration of MD Visits by Elderly Patients with Heart Disease. Health Care
Management Review. 2002. 15:1-6.

Xu KT, Rohrer JE, and Borders T. The Impact of Managed Care and Practice Size on Primary Care
Physicians’ Perceived Ability to Refer. Journal of Health Services Research & Policy. 2002. 7(3): 1-8.

Rohrer JE, Xu K and Schiffer RB. Risk Factors for Hospital Admission of Long-Term Dementia Patients.
Texas Journal of Rural Health .
18(3):66-71, 2000.

Borders T, Xu KT, Rohrer JE, and Warner R. Are Rural Residents and Hispanics Less Satisfied with Medical
Care? Evidence from the Permian Basin. Journal of Rural Health. Forthcoming
PRESENTATIONS
 Academy of Health Services Research Annual Meeting
, 6/9/01. ‘Gender, Health, and Access to Medical Care among Adults in the United States’
 Academy of Health Service Research Annual Meeting
, 6/9/01. ‘The Economics of Proper Drug Use:
Opportunity Cost Savings from the Use of JNC Recommended Drugs in Treating Patients with Essential
Hypertension’

 International Society of Pharmacoeconomics and Outcomes Research Fifth Annual International Meeting ,
05/22/2000
‘Methodological Issues in Estimating Disease Progression: Is Markov Model the Best Method?’
 American Pharmaceutical Association Annual Meeting , 03/06/1999
‘A Simultaneous Choice Model of Drug Utilization: A Study on HIV Patients Facing Two Alternative
Prescriptions’
 North Carolina Triangle Health Economics Seminar , 12/15/1998
‘Dynamics of Smoking Behavior, Recreational Activity and the Utilization of Medical Care’
PROFESSIONAL MEMBERSHIPS
 American Economics Association, 1998-present
 American Public Health Association, 1998-present
 International Health Economics Association, 1998-present