University of Iowa Health Management & Policy

By: Brett Tschida Greetings from Clarion, Iowa.   I am spending my summer interning at Iowa Specialty Hospital.   Iowa Specialty Hospital (ISH) is a pair of critical access hospitals and a handful of clinics in north central Iowa.   The hospitals are located in Clarion and Belmond, with clinics in Hampton and Clear Lake.   My preceptor is Steve Simonin CEO, who is an Iowa MHA/MBA alumnus.   I was apprehensive about interning at a small rural hospital, but have found it to be a blessing.   Iowa Specialty Hospital has shown me that independent rural hospitals can provide the highest quality of care.   ISH utilizes its pristine facilities; both locations have undergone major remodeling in the past decade, and highly regarded physicians to attract patients from a wide geographic area.   I have learned a great deal about strategic vision, culture and financial responsibility through observation of ISH senior leadership.   Wh...

By: Michael Tiedman Greetings from Nevada, IA! I’ve been spending my summer with Story County Medical Center, just 15 minutes east of Ames. Story Medical operates several family healthcare clinics across the county and natural health clinic in Ames. The new campus opened in 2009 on the southern outskirts of Nevada and houses a 17-bed inpatient unit as well as outpatient services, an outpatient surgery center, emergency, radiology and lab departments. In addition to being designated as a Critical Access Hospital, Story Medical is affiliated with UnityPoint Health – Des Moines. As a result, my time here this summer has been filled with very diverse experiences. I have had constant exposure to the CEO and University of Iowa MHA/MBA alumnus, Tim Ahlers, as well as his entire senior team. All the people here are wonderful and have been extremely welcoming. I’ve been able to tag along with Tim to everything from senior team and board meetings, to Rotary Club and even a UnityPoi...