Summer Internship: NorthShore University HealthSystem


By: Garret Danelz (MHA '19)
Bleeding Black & Gold in Northwestern Wildcat territory.
This morning, I walked into the hospital for the last day of my summer internship at NorthShore University HealthSystem. Located just north of Chicago, NorthShore is an integrated health system housing four hospitals – Evanston, Glenbrook, Highland Park, and Skokie. NorthShore was the first Illinois healthcare system to be Magnet-recognized and has been named to the Watson Health Top 100 Hospitals list a record 19 times. NorthShore is also dedicated to medical education and research as the teaching affiliate for the University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine.
My preceptor, Dave Rahija, President of the Skokie Hospital campus, has successfully leveraged these unique aspects of NorthShore and integrated them into my internship experience. Dave believes in high-level exposure and has given me a seat at the table at many Executive Leadership meetings. I have grown both personally and professionally just by witnessing the interaction between senior leaders. That, coupled with observing surgeries, meeting with physicians, and rounding with frontline staff allowed me to see how high-level decisions impact the organization as a whole. 
I had leadership responsibilities on two projects. One project involved supporting NorthShore’s Care Transitions Team and Transformation Management Office in redesigning NorthShore’s continuum of care across the system. The second project was to develop a comprehensive business case, and subsequent presentation, which analyzed the operational and financial impacts of expanding and merging two separate infusion centers within Skokie Hospital into one unit. Each project challenged me, but gave me confidence to be a contributor within this industry.
There is a strong Hawkeye contingent at NorthShore and I have felt privileged to work with many strong alumni: Sean O’Grady (MHA ’93), Justin Brueck (MHA ’10), and Matthew Belanger (MHA/MBA ’15). These Hawks look out for their own and, along with the rest of NorthShore, have made me feel like a valued member of the team.
Outside of work, I have enjoyed the NorthShore-offered housing at the Evanston Hilton – making my bed is suddenly a difficult task. I continue to irresponsibly spend money on concert tickets and food, but there is always something new to see (and eat) in the Chicagoland area. I also enjoyed hosting two fellow classmates, Ben Mohr and Matthew Jerome, for a weekend of fun in Chicago. I look forward to completing my academic journey at Iowa and sharing stories with the rest of my class.

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