The MHC ACO Population Health Fellowship Program is a semester-long service and training program designed for graduate and undergraduate students in population health. Fellows are placed in practice-based settings within Marshall Health Network or affiliated community, non-profit, governmental, and/or health service organizations within the Marshall Health Network service area. Through a curriculum and experience focused on population health improvement, patient-centered, team based, and risk informed health services, health equity and collaborative leadership. Fellows receive exposure and training to various aspects of population health and tangible skills in healthcare administration, health improvement and population health management. Fellows may apply for additional participation semesters after the first semester in the program subject to availability. Examples of placement projects include:
- Working with population health management team members and quality improvement resources on health improvement projects.
- Developing real-world experience in health data assessment, evaluation, and implementation of population-based policies by engagement in analytics and data evaluation projects for health improvement, addressing health-related social needs and predictive analytics for health management.
- Coordinating research and evaluation of health improvement outcomes and performance metrics.
- Getting hands-on experience in program management and delivery for services as part of the population health improvement team and participating in one or more value-based incentive arrangements to improve health and contain costs.
Each Population Health Fellow will work collaboratively under the guidance of an assigned preceptor. Preceptors help mentor and guide Fellows as they explore interests, strengths, and opportunities for growth in population health. Fellows work directly with their preceptors in placements sites across Marshall Health Network (and affiliated placements) to provide services to the patients and communities served by their placement sites. Preceptors will provide ongoing supervision and mentoring to the Fellow; this entails a minimum of two hours per month to plan and discuss work progress. Each Fellow and his or her preceptor will develop a Learning Pathway for the course of the Fellowship with anticipated Experiential Learning Experiences (ELEs) and monthly updates of the progress in meeting these ELEs. The preceptor will also facilitate feedback from staff from the placement site and connect Fellows with appropriate resources to help Fellows in planning for post-Fellowship career opportunities. Fellowships are classified as casual part-time positions and provide for an hourly wage stipend without benefits such as vacation pay, sick leave, paid holidays, or health insurance coverage. Fellowships are intended to be coordinated with active participation in a graduate or undergraduate course of study; accordingly, fellowships are aligned with the academic calendar of the Fellow and are intended to consist of between 16-30 hours per week. Each Fellow will develop a course of engagement with the Fellow's preceptor and supervisor at the placement site. Each Fellow will be expected to execute and abide by a Fellowship Participation Agreement that outlines the expectations of participation and conditions of continued participation. The program can be modified or terminated at any time.