Diverse Internship Programs in Higher Education

At UnityPoint Health, Pursue Your Passion founder Erin Osborn transitioned from outpatient clinician at the Atrium office to clinical coordinator of the Behavioral Health Service line. At the time, there were only two departments (an inpatient and an emergency department) in the service line, and they only had one intern.

At UnityPoint Health, UnityPlace was formed, which added outpatient behavioral health services to the service line. Now, interns could be offered placement in either inpatient, outpatient, or in the emergency department. They had roughly 20 interns at the time.

COVID arrived, and all internships were stopped. Students were not allowed onsite, and we had to complete the remainder of the semester doing remote learning.

An internship program was created at UnityPoint Health, placing students at all levels of education (associates, bachelors, masters, and doctorates) for internship and practicum experiences.

The internship program grew substantially, and over 60 students at all levels of education and degrees completed internships that year. Roughly 80% of them were hired upon graduation. Osborn presented to senior leadership in December, outlining the success of the internship program and the challenge of creating an internship program for nurses since the devastation of the workforce after COVID.

UnityPoint Health transitioned to Carle Health. The workforce development team created the nurse residency internship program.

Out of Osborn’s love for healthcare, higher education, students, and service, she formed Pursue Your Passion. It helps other organizations grow workforce development opportunities for students through internship programs and placement opportunities.