After about six years of working professionally in corporate Human Resources, I wanted to find work that enabled me to contribute to improving the health of individuals and populations. Originally, I began in the MPH Program at the University of Washington, which provided valuable exposure to many of the health challenges facing our country. Midway through my first year, I was hospitalized for a somewhat serious medical condition, which required me to take a leave of absence from school. During my leave, I had a chance to reflect on my personal experience and how I would be able to make an impact on the lives of patients. I felt that the MHA Program provided a wider range of skills that would ultimately help me meet my personal aims.

My undergraduate degree is in Industrial/Organizational Psychology from DePaul University in Chicago. I originally planned on a career in social work, but after working in an adolescent inpatient psychiatric facility I decided to change my focus to psychology issues in the workplace.

In addition to working for about 18 months in social work, I worked for almost six years in corporate human resources at a large organization in Chicago. My work didn't include many of the recruiting, benefits, or employee relations activities most people associate with human resources. I worked on a variety of projects, but most of them had an emphasis on process improvement and organizational change management. It was a great opportunity to develop a variety of project management, communication, and presentation skills, but I knew a career in health care would allow to me to make a greater impact on people's lives.

As a person who has experienced the health care system from the perspective of a patient, it has been great learning from the faculty and alumni about the challenges faced by health care organizations. Throughout the curriculum, there is an emphasis on understanding who the stakeholders are and how they strive to provide optimal health to patients, their families, and any other individuals with an interest in improving health. Two courses have been especially helpful in this regard: Introduction to Clinical Care and Health Policy Economics.

Introduction to Clinical Care provides a forum for students to explore a variety of issues in health care from the perspective of patients, physicians, nurses, administrators, and other health care providers. This course required me to question some of my individual beliefs and gave me and my classmates the opportunity to share ideas about what an ideal health care system would look like.

Health Policy Economics was intimidating to me at first, but the course discussion and reading materials explained some of the complex challenges in health care in easy-to-understand terms.

The Mentor Program is an excellent way to connect students with alumni. My mentor works for a large insurance company and has facilitated a number of informational interviews with health care organizations in the Seattle area. These interviews have helped me focus my career plans.

The Program also provides excellent career resources, and students gain valuable experience through summer internships. The recruitment process for summer internships is very easy for students, and the opportunities provide a variety of challenges that will enable students to gain exposure to a variety of health care settings.

Given my experience as a patient, my goal is to improve the quality of care and reduce the cost of services needed to treat patients at various degrees of health. I am still exploring how to accomplish this goal, but my interests are closely aligned with quality and performance improvement at the provider and policy level.

I think the program does an excellent job of recognizing the different needs and learning styles of students. I also think that the Department of Health Services as a whole provides a number of opportunities for MHA students to explore areas of interest that fall outside the core curriculum. Weekly seminars and events give students the opportunity to hear world-renown experts speak about their experiences through a variety of health-related topics. As a student with an interest in public health, these events enable me to keep a broader perspective of health services, without the obligation to take quarter-long courses in other programs.

Since graduating in June 2008, Dan has become a Consultant in Strategic Services and Quality Planning at Group Health Cooperative in Seattle.