Alex Thorp (MHA '22): Washington County Hospital and Clinics

Hello from Iowa City!

This summer, I commuted to Washington, Iowa, to intern at Washington County Hospital and Clinics. WCHC is a 22-bed, critical access hospital located about 45 minutes southwest of Iowa City. Growing up in the Des Moines area, I was excited to be in a small town and gain more experience in a rural hospital and community. Since it is such a smaller organization, I was able to have access to so many departments and leaders, which made my internship experience that much more valuable.

Most of my time in Washington was spent working on operations projects. I have always had an interest in this area, and my experiences over the summer cemented this passion. My biggest project was researching and strategizing how the hospital could increase its CMS Star Ratings. I was completely unfamiliar with this, so I really had to put a lot of work into this project. I was tasked with finding out how the scores are calculated, what measures they use, how the measures are collected and reported, and ways WCHC could increase these ratings. I presented all my findings to the CEO, COO, CFO, CNO, and CMO, where I received positive feedback. Not only was the project work valuable, but I got to practice and strengthen my public speaking skills this summer with how much I presented to the administration team!

Aside from my larger project, I also worked on many smaller-scale ones. I assisted with a project concerning provider and payer credentialing where I provided pros and cons for having someone in-house or going with another outside vendor. I also worked on a project dealing with genetic testing where I looked at which tests we were reimbursed for, how we should handle outside providers having tests done at WCHC, and which processes needed to be changed internally. Another project was working with their human resources platform, where I cleaned up job descriptions and job titles for the entire organization. The last one I will mention was looking at patient transporters for the organization and seeing if they should be utilized to help with patient falls and/or wayfinding at the main campus. It’s safe to say I was super busy this summer with all my project work, and there are many others not mentioned!

Although things were busy, we made time to be involved with the community and volunteer at multiple events. We helped at two golf events, one at Riverside Casino and Golf Resort and one in Washington. Both were to help with the Washington County Hospital Foundation. We also volunteered at Kids Day at the Washington County Fair, where we helped children make name tags and color. It was incredible to get out and see the community you were working at and get a better sense of the people WCHC serves.

It is hard to believe I had any time, but along with working and volunteering, I also have been planning a wedding! My fiancé and I are getting married in October, so things have been in full swing. I had my bridal shower and bachelorette party this summer, where I got to see so many friends and family. We also took a few mini-vacations on the weekends to Kansas City and Milwaukee (and play with seals). It was a crazy summer but one that I will surely never forget!

*A Note From The Editor*

If you would like to keep up with Alex, you can find her here on LinkedIn!