Summer Internship: TriStar Skyline Medical Center

By: Patrick Rafferty

Hello everyone!  I am writing to you from Nashville, Tennessee where I am the administrative intern at TriStar Skyline Medical Center.  Skyline Medical Center is an acute-care facility licensed for 223 beds and part of TriStar Health, which consists of 18 hospitals in Tennessee, Kentucky, and Georgia.  Skyline also has a sister hospital called TriStar Skyline Madison Campus that is a 121-bed inpatient and outpatient behavioral health facility.  Although most of my time has been spent at Skyline Medical Center, I have been lucky enough to have experiences at both facilities. I have, also, been very fortunate in being able to attend meetings at the division level with the President of TriStar Health, Steve Corbeil, an alumnus of the program.

Working with the administrative team at Skyline has been an invaluable experience thus far. Skyline Medical Center is a booming facility going through many exciting changes. Most notable is the continued growth of the level two trauma center that opened this past year. I have had the opportunity to experience many different aspects of the hospital in my time here.  This has included observing procedures in the OR, shadowing security and facility management, learning about the capital budgeting and staffing processes, sitting in on administrative meetings, and much more. I am currently working on projects involving patient throughput, nurse staffing, patient experience, sepsis, and critical care unit renovations, as well as other small projects. The chances to learn have been endless and I have been doing my best to soak everything in during my short time here.

Outside of work I have found the time to experience all that Nashville has to offer.  There is no shortage of good spots to eat and enjoy live music, especially on Broadway.  I attended the CMA fest and enjoyed live country music on the biggest of stages. I have also found time to golf, although I cannot say I am used to the elevation changes that are present on the courses in the area.  My experience so far has been nothing but positive and I look forward to the second half of my internship at TriStar Skyline Medical Center.