Summer Internship: University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics

Kylor Sorensen (left) and other administrative interns
during a rounding in UIHC's hazardous waste disposal room.

By: Kylor Sorensen (MHA '18) 

Greetings from Hawkeye nation! This summer I have the great pleasure of interning at University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics (UIHC) in Iowa City, Iowa. With the addition of the new Stead Family Children’s Hospital (SFCH), UIHC is a 795 bed facility with roughly 35,000 acute admissions and 961,930 ambulatory patient visits in fiscal year 2016. UIHC is the only academic medical center in the state of Iowa. It employs roughly 900 staff physicians and dentists, 2,200 nurses, 800 residents and fellows, and there are 1,500 volunteers. UIHC provides services to all 99 counties in the state of Iowa, making it an essential access point for patients and their families.

My preceptor this summer is Mr. Scott Turner, Chief Operating Officer of UIHC and Executive Director of the SFCH. I have had the privilege of working closely with Mr. Turner throughout the summer on data-driven projects that focus on the pediatric population and the support services that report up to Mr. Turner. My biggest project has been reducing length of stay (LOS) within the pediatric population by 1,000 days. UIHC uses Vizient to run patient population through a model which provides an expected LOS for every patient. I have been looking into increasing throughput along with educating physicians on proper clinical documentation to ensure we are getting reimbursed for how sick our patients really are. Other projects I have taken on include financial analysis of the dialysis program, creation and implementation of a new sustainability committee, streamlining worker safety reports, and an annual space survey for the hospital.

I have also spent time rounding with various departments throughout the hospital including supply chain, nursing, engineering services, etc. Additionally, I have had the opportunity to sit in on several senior leadership meetings, and I have taken the opportunity to meet one-on-one with executives such as Mr. Ken Kates (the CEO), Mr. Sabi Singh (Mr. Turner’s co-COO), Dr. Theresa Brennan (the Chief Medical Officer), and other senior leaders.

Outside of my summer internship I have spent most of my time hacking it around the many golf courses in Iowa City, spending time with other interns in the area, and making frequent trips to Chicago to fulfill my duties as a first time uncle. I look forward to seeing everyone in a few weeks, and to welcoming the first year students to our program.