Intern Expo Is a Showcase for Up-and-Coming Talent in Health Care

“The future president of AdventHealth is probably in this room,” said Kenneth Bradley, director of emerging leaders for AdventHealth.

“I better go meet them,” replied AdventHealth president/CEO Terry Shaw.

The recent fourth annual Intern Expo at AdventHealth’s Leadership Institute in Altamonte Springs, Florida, United States, showcased interns hailing from universities across the country, who are dreaming up the future of health care. During their 12-week summer internship, nearly 60 interns rotated through various disciplines within health care. From operating rooms to executive offices, these college students were immersed in AdventHealth’s mission and values to discover the role in health care that best suits them. 

“Rather than passively shadowing, our interns are deeply engaged in projects that allow them to add value and build grit,” Bradley observed. “As our interns integrated themselves into various teams across the organization, their unique perspective cast a new light on how our mission and values are manifested in every single function within the organization.”

Zachary Owen, a graphic design major at Andrews University, saw parallels between Jesus’ healing ministry and the design process of the new AdventHealth app during his time on the digital health team.

“As we reviewed and refined the interface for the AdventHealth app, we were inspired by Christ’s empathy and understanding of the people He served. We found that empathy is key to designing something that meets people where they are and makes it easy for users to take the next step in their health journey,” Owen said. “I participated in user testing and research to better understand our users and help build that empathy into the app’s design.”

Bailey Park, who recently earned bachelor’s degrees in nursing and mathematics from Southern Adventist University, split her internship between AdventHealth’s IT department and the Integrated Health Services (IHS) nurse leadership team.

“Each team member’s role has an impact on our patients, whether they work directly with them or not,” Park said. “Whether you are personally caring for patients or supporting the technology that allows us to care for them, the convergence of those talents is what produces quality care.”

As the intern expo buzzed with the energy of budding talent and new ideas, senior executives and various team members had the opportunity to interact with the interns and discuss the impact their experience had on their perspective and career plans. Through mentorship and leadership development, the interns depart with a newfound understanding of health care and how their unique talents and abilities can be used to serve a purpose greater than themselves.

The original version of this story was posted on the AdventHealth news site.