A new partnership between the Ivy College of Business, UnityPoint Health in Des Moines and Mary Greeley Medical Center was introduced for Iowa State students pursuing a degree in healthcare management.
UnityPoint Health employs around 8,100 employees, including 1,000 physicians, providing care for patients in central Iowa through an integrated network of clinics, hospitals and home care services, which include:
- Iowa Methodist Medical Center
- Younker Rehabilitation Center
- Central Iowa only Level 1 Trauma Center
- Iowa Lutheran Hospital
- Methodist West Hospital
- Blank Children’s Hospital
- Pediatric subspecialty clinics
- John Stoddard Cancer Center
- Grinnell Regional Medical Center
- Eyerly Ball Community Mental Health Services
- UnityPoint Clinic
- UnityPoint at Home
- UnityPoint Hospice
“Our healthcare management program is in its second year of existence, but we already have several partnerships with healthcare organizations, including the most recent one with UnityPoint Health in Des Moines,” said Natallia Gray, associate teaching professor of management and healthcare management program director. “UnityPoint Health will create a structured internship aligned with the healthcare management curriculum, like healthcare quality management, healthcare financial management, healthcare operations and healthcare compliance.”
According to the College of Business, the school signed a memorandum of understanding, effective Aug. 1, with the two organizations to help healthcare management students gain real-world experiences through paid internships.
“In general, internships deliver a trifecta of advantages: benefiting the institution through enhancing the competitiveness of the degree program, healthcare organizations by providing a significant return on the investment and building healthcare management workforce and students by providing practical experience and preparing them for their careers,” Gray said.
This is the second partnership between the Ivy College of Business and Mary Greeley Medical Center. This allows business students to participate in hands-on opportunities in the healthcare management field in a nationally ranked hospital without having to leave Ames.
“Ivy is a great place to get a healthcare management degree because of our partnership with local hospitals,” Gray said. “While we don’t have a medical school or hospital on campus, we are collaborating with outstanding hospitals with nationwide reputations for providing high-quality, cost-effective healthcare services located in Ames and Des Moines.”
According to Joyce McDanel, the vice president of human resources and education at UnityPoint Health in Des Moines, these internships provide opportunities for students to see different aspects of career paths available in healthcare. By doing so, students will work on real projects, help solve business solutions and get an idea of what it is like to work in the healthcare field.
“We are very fortunate to partner with UnityPoint and excited to offer expanded opportunities for practical experiences in the field of healthcare management for Ivy students,” Gray said.
For additional information regarding internships, contact Joyce McDanel at [email protected] or Natallia Gray at [email protected].
