University of Iowa Health Management & Policy

Steve Birchard, '86, presenting to current HMP Students On December 3, two program alumni, Steve Birchard, ’86, and Nathan Patton, ’11, presented a workshop on consulting for current students. Birchard is a Partner and Patton is a Senior Consultant at Deloitte Consulting. During the event they discussed a day in the life of a consultant, example projects, summer internship and postgraduate opportunities, and held a question and answer session for interested students. Students were very appreciative of the opportunity to explore and learn about other careers in healthcare and would like to thank both Mr. Birchard and Mr. Patton for taking their time to visit. Nathan Patton, '11, fielding questions from students

During the recent Fall 2012 College of Public Health Poster Session, 3 HMP students presented their posters on various topics. The following students were among many presenters that participated in the day: Nico Aguilar : “Health Policy Practicum – US Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions” John Heinemann : “Public Health Advocacy & Policy Development: A Reflection of my MPH Practicum” Jessica Waters : Implementing the Johnson County School-Based Pertussis Immunization Program Below are photos from the event: Third-year MHA/ MPH student John Heinemann Third-year MPH student Jessica Waters Second-year MHA/ MPH Student Nico Aguilar

Before students left for break, the Iowa Student Association of Healthcare Leaders (ISAHL) hosted a potluck for the students, faculty, staff, and their families to celebrate the holidays together. Attendees each brought a dish to share and it was a great way end the semester. Below are photos of the celebration:

By Phil Wirtjes Students enjoy a slide that connects two levels at EPIC One of the many benefits that the Health Management and Policy department offers each fall is a first-year class trip to tour several area hospitals. Traditionally, this trip takes place in Des Moines and Omaha, but this year the first-year class packed their suitcases and headed to Milwaukee. Among the many opportunities included on the trip were speaking with alumni of the program, learning more about the locations visited, and growing closer as a class. Students visiting  a tree house at EPIC After departing Iowa City on Thursday morning, students made the first stop in Verona, Wisconsin at the “Intergalactic” headquarters of the healthcare software company, EPIC. Once there, the group was taken on a campus wide tour, participated in an extremely informative Q&A session, and was even allowed to ride the slide that connects the 2 nd floor to the ground level! Due to the themed styling of ea

Top, L to R: Phil Wirtjes, Connie Lee, and AJ Nice Back: Nick Howald, Scott Hutgen and Casi Roethler In the first week of November the University of Kansas Hospital (KUMED) hosted their second annual case competition that included graduate students from the University of Missouri, University of Kansas and University of Iowa.  Dr. Robert Lee, MHSA Program Director at KU, asked teams to develop a scenario analysis looking at uncertainties that the hospital and clinics of University of Kansas would be facing in the coming years.  Dr. Lee stated that “these are very real issues that cause some sleepless nights for lots of folks here in Kansas City.” To aid in this endeavor  8 teams were formed to compete in the case study.  The University of Iowa sent three teams: AJ Nice/Scott Hurtgen, Nick Howald/Phil Wirtjes, and Connie Lee/Casi Roethler.  During the weeks prior to the competition, teams prepared presentations to be judged by hospital executives and university professors. 

Students listening to alum presentations On September 27 th and 28 th , second and third-year MHA and MPH in Policy students attended a career seminar, Creating a Career Road Map for 21 st Century Health Management Leaders, provided jointly by the HMP department and Witt-Kieffer, an executive search firm devoted to healthcare, life sciences, higher education, and not-for-profit industries. During the first day, Jim Nelson, Managing Principal, Sullivan Cotter and Associates, Inc., presented on compensation trends and explained how compensation discussion should be handled early in one’s career. Next, students asked questions to an alum panel about what it takes to succeed in fellowships and first employment. To end the day, students were presented with tips for succeeding in phone interviews and the broke up into groups with alum. In these groups, the alumni conducted mock phone interviews with the students, giving them an idea of what to expect for upcoming fellowship pho

 By Paige Wallace Speed Networking, an event offered annually to first-year MHA students, took place on Thursday, September 6 th at Brown Deere Golf Course in Coralville. The event gives 1 st year students a chance to interact with alumni in order to prepare for upcoming events such as ACHE Congress and internship interviews. We had a great turnout at Brown Deere hosting around 25 Health Management and Policy Alumni. An alumni group from Alegent Creighton Health held a seminar prior the Speed Networking event. Meg Duffy, Eric Mooss, and Chris Evans shared their experiences and gave advice on professional development and networking skills. They also created a forum in which 1 st years practiced their “elevator speeches.” The students left Alegent’s seminar feeling less tense and more prepared to interact at Brown Deere with alumni. The networking event consisted of two different environments; one room involved mingling and appetizers while the other was a more str

  Students from the Class of 2014 By AJ Nice  Although it was an extremely hot summer, excitement for the start of classes was on the rise and along with that, Orientation Week.   Like any new thing, it takes time to assimilate and become familiar with new people.   However, the orientation schedule for the incoming Class of 2014 made that transition much smoother and pain-free.   After the opening address from Dr. Tom Vaughn, Professor and MHA Director, and a few laughs the students began to feel much more at ease and even more excited to get to know one another.   Being asked multiple times of their name, hometown, education, and fun facts they quickly became integrated and by mid-week they were grilling out, playing jokes and wishing orientation week was a little bit longer.   Students at the UI High Adventure Course Several highlights of the week included the UI High Adventure Challenge Course, group picnic and the Kickball Tournament.   The rewarding aspe

On a trip to Colorado, Jean Sheeley, Director of HMP Student Services, made several stops to visit alumni and students at their internship sites.  She visited Will Holets and Sam Neiswender at their internship sites and met with their preceptors. Sam Neiswender, 2 nd  year MHA/MBA student completed his internship at the University of Colorado Hospital, Aurora, CO. Will Holets, 2 nd  year MHA/MBA student completed his internship at HCA, Denver, CO. Photo right: Back row, left to right is Aaron DeBoer (’03,  Healthcare, Navigant, Denver, CO), James Wilson (’06 , Director of Treasury and Debt, University of Colorado Hospital), Ronald Snow (’83 HCA, Vice President, Strategic Pricing & Analytics, Colorado and Oklahoma), and Sam Neiswender.  Front row, left to right, Jean Sheeley and Will Holets. She also made a stop in Greeley to have lunch with Michelle Joy, ‘98 (photo left).  Michelle is the Associate Administrator at North Colorado Medical Center in Greeley. 

By Larissa Luckel  It’s hard to believe there are only two weeks of summer left until school starts!  Unfortunately, this means there is even less time left at my internship.  This summer, I have been interning at Geisinger Health System in northeast Pennsylvania.  Founded in 1915, Geisinger Health System is the nation’s largest rural health care system and has recently gained national recognition for its ability to provide high-quality care at costs below average.  Myself and John Heineman, fellow Iowa MHA/MPH student It is a very exciting time to be with Geisinger and I am trying to soak in every bit of knowledge that I can.  I have learned a lot about their innovative care delivery models, such as ProvenCare (the “warranty”) and ProvenHealth Navigator, and have been involved in many meetings about upcoming projects with CMMI (Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation) and PCORI (Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute).   Geisinger has recently merged with s