As a former certified medical assistant, Vonda Ramsey, GCMM’19, has experience in the healthcare field, but she was looking for greater management experience. She enrolled in the Graduate Certificate in Medical Management at the Kelley School of Business to expand her business knowledge and career opportunities.
“In healthcare, we see how the clinical side works, but we don’t see the business of it. We don’t know what happens behind the scenes,” Vonda said. “But there’s a lot of time, money, and effort involved in the business of delivering healthcare.”
Vonda completed the 12-month, online healthcare administration certificate in 2019. She says she gained a better understanding of the organizational flow of healthcare and the finances behind delivering care. She says some of the greatest takeaways from the program came from the group work involved in the capstone project. At the end of the program, students work in teams to solve an actual healthcare challenge at a local organization by applying what they’ve learned throughout their coursework.
Vonda’s team worked with Easterseals to promote its program that provides assistive technology devices for individuals with disabilities to overcome barriers in the workplace. Her team specifically worked to create a marketing plan to promote the program to local businesses so they can access devices from Easterseals in a timely manner for new employees.
“The experience in this project was wonderful—I loved it. It was amazing to learn more about these devices, and it was rewarding to help this organization move toward their goal,” Vonda said. “I’m a hands-on person: I need to see what I’m learning and then apply it directly. To see this work and then contribute to it was rewarding.”
I’m a hands-on person: I need to see what I’m learning and then apply it directly. To see this work and then contribute to it was rewarding.”
Students in this healthcare administration certificate program represent various areas of healthcare—from nurses, physical therapists, physician assistants and pharmacists to practice managers, care coordinators, hospital marketing professionals and healthcare administrators. Courses are taught by Kelley School professors who teach and research in the field of healthcare administration. Vonda says her instructors made the curriculum understandable and approachable.
“Kelley faculty members are very knowledgeable, and they explained the business concepts in a way that was understandable,” she said. “I could easily connect with them as needed. When they taught the class, they were open to questions, and their time seemed unlimited if you needed to talk. It was a very positive experience with the professors.”
Vonda recently started a new job as a business consultant supporting grant consultants in Eli Lilly’s continuing medical education grant office. She says she is using what she learned in the Graduate Certificate in Medical Management in her work.
“The organizational skills I gained from returning to school for this certificate are helpful as I manage several projects and deadlines at once,” Vonda said. “Being a team player and working well with a group is always useful because every individual is different, and group dynamics can be challenging. Working with the diverse teams in this program was personally very useful to me. These are all experiences you can start using from day one.”