Going Forth

As anxious as I am about graduation, I realize how fortunate I am to have received my college degree at Georgetown. The late night paper writing and the early morning rush to internships have given me the academic and work experience necessary to start my career. Most importantly though, Georgetown’s philosophy and culture, especially at the School of Nursing & Health Studies (NHS), has prepared me for the world beyond Healy gates.

This September I will begin to work at Triage Consulting Group in San Francisco. Triage is hired by hospitals to perform audits of their insurance payments. Triage reviews contracts with third-party payers, hospital billing claims, and payments received. I will have the opportunity to work with a new group of people in teams, sometimes traveling to other cities to conduct our work.

The classes I’ve taken through my major, Healthcare Management & Policy, have given me the academic background to help me thrive at Triage. As much of a struggle as it was to wake up for those 8 a.m. classes, I am well prepared because of them. I understand the revenue cycle of a hospital and have a basic financial background in health care organizations. I have learned the organization of hospitals and how they are often run. I know how to work in a team environment on a project and use everyone’s strengths to achieve success.

A Commitment to Service

One of the most important aspects of my college experience was my internship with the Division of General Internal Medicine at MedStar Georgetown University Hospital. Although I’m not a fan of the “blood & guts” of hospitals, I do want to improve healthcare through administrative and organizational means. At the hospital, I was able to do work that allowed me to gain a greater understanding of hospital finance and organization.

While the hard and soft skills gained from my classes and internships will be with me for many more years, I am most appreciative of Georgetown’s philosophy to encourage students to be engaged in the world. There is a special focus on service and social justice. One of the reasons I am so excited about starting at Triage is its commitment to service. We have a company-wide day of service as well as 16 hours of volunteer time off each year.

St. Ignatius of Loyola, founder of the Jesuits, said, “Go forth and set the world on fire.” Considering Georgetown’s influence on me, I hope to commit to a career that lives out the value of “men and women for others.” I would like to focus on global health, particularly improving access to health services in rural areas of developing countries, in the long term. Being at NHS has helped to foster this goal. Each course underscores the human aspect of healthcare. Even though we may not be working directly with patients we have focused on how our actions can affect patient care. During the summer before my junior year, I participated in a study abroad program focusing on global health. The program, sponsored by the Department of International Health at NHS, took place in Shanghai, China and allowed me to see how I could play a role in health improvements worldwide.

Georgetown has fostered my intellectual development, which has not only prepared me for next year, but for future endeavors. Not only will I have the knowledge and skills from my classes, but also my commitment as a global citizen. I am excited to represent Georgetown next year in San Francisco and at Triage and, one day, throughout the world.

By Stephanie Grice (NHS’12)
(Published May 16, 2012)