NFLHE Summer Enrichment Program
For Immediate Release: July 21, 2008
NFLHE Invites Members to Mentor Summer Enrichment Program Interns
CHICAGO (July 21, 2008) – The National Forum for Latino Healthcare Executives (NFLHE) is partnering with the Institute for Diversity in Health Management on its enhanced Summer Enrichment Program (SEP) to boost the presence of diverse leaders in health care.
NFLHE is working with the Institute and its SEP program to continue to pair top diverse scholars with leading health care executives to build the next generation of diverse executives. NFLHE is also working to increase numbers of Latino interns and mentors.
NFLHE works toward building and promoting a network of future health care leaders and seeks to foster discussion with respect to health policy and research agenda affecting the U.S. Latino communities.
The enhanced SEP facilitates additional mentoring opportunities for interns beyond the preceptors who support them during their on site stay. Mentors include healthcare executives from diverse professional associations, including NFLHE, the National Association of Health Services Executives, the Asian Health Care Leaders Association and the American Leadership Council for Diversity in Health Care.
To that end, NFLHE members are needed as mentors for SEP.
“It’s important to have Latino leaders in general you can look up to and relate to,” said Michael Anaya, a founding member of NFLHE and its incoming president. “For many, the presence of a Latino CEO or senior health care executive may serve to contend against a history of low expectations.”
NFLHE is a national organization led by senior executive health care leaders in the U.S. whose vision is to be a voice for their experience and of the diverse communities they serve. NFLHE supports executive leadership development and encourages Latino leadership representation on a national level.
“The SEP is an important program that lies at the heart of what we at NFLHE do – from developing a better future for Latinos in health care leadership to mentoring the next generation,” said NFLHE President Hank Hernandez, CEO of Las Palmas Medical Center in El Paso, TX. “I urge every NFLHE member to get involved in this program and help lay a better foundation for tomorrow.”
Joy N’Daou, education programs manager at the Institute, an affiliate of the American Hospital Association, said internship partners include ACHE, the Colorado Hospital Association/Rocky Mountain Health Plan, the Texas Hospital Association, the University of New Mexico, about a dozen Veterans Affairs sites and various private hospitals.
“Last year, we placed 27 students in 21 different locations. We’re looking to do more than that this year,” N’Daou said. There were 100 student applicants this year but relatively few Latinos. “We would like to increase the numbers of Latino students participating in the SEP.”
As an example, Colorado has a rich and diverse population and the Colorado Hospital Association considers promoting diversity to be one of its top strategic goals. To that end, the Association looks forward to collaborating with the Institute for Diversity in Health Management and its partners in the Summer Enrichment Program, said CHA President Steven Summer.
“Fostering diversity in the ranks of management is crucial to the future of healthcare,” Summer said. “We are committed to offering the resources of CHA to the effort to make that goal a reality.”
The internship includes a modest stipend for living expenses. Many students are from other cities, and the SEP can place them anywhere in the country. “The purpose is to give them hands-on experience, expose them to the field and provide them with an intense mentoring experience,” N’Daou said.
“Latinos often feel a sense of duty to give back and to support others, which tends to manifest itself in volunteerism,” said Anaya, FACHE, who is CEO of LifePoints Colorado Plains Medical Center in Fort Morgan, CO. “I believe you enable yourself through volunteerism by creating a stronger confident, credible and competently involved leader.”
For 10 to 12 weeks, interns work with some of the leaders in the industry, including NFLHE members, who share their experience and knowledge with the interns. “It’s all about developing the skills that will navigate the up-and-comers to the next tacking point,” Anaya said.
The executive-level experience and mentoring help interns as they, too, prepare for leadership, N’Daou said.
Much like NFLHE, the Institute’s primary mission is to increase the presence of diverse ethnic/racial professionals in health care management. The SEP works to achieve this goal by helping to train and support the next generation of diverse executives. Since 1994, more than 500 students have successfully completed the SEP.
Anaya offers this advice to mentors: “I believe you need to have demonstrated strong leadership in your profession, along with a proven track record of success. Commitment, personality, attitude, education and experience are just a few of the many attributes a mentor should have in their ‘mentor’ arsenal. The most important aspect for me is the ability to translate your experiences to your protégés, and be prepared to listen when they need to share."
N’Daou agreed. The goal is to position the interns for a future in management and leadership – that’s why it’s the Summer Enrichment Program.
NFLHE invites interested students and mentors to contact Joy N’Daou at (312) 422-2658 or jndaou@aha.org. Information about the SEP is available on the Institutes's Web site, www.diversityconnection.org.
NFLHE Media Contact:
Carol Castaneda
Castaneda Global Communications
703-369-0414 || castaneda77@aol.com
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