Here at the Pauley Heart Center, summer means we’re welcoming new “Pauley people,” from undergraduate fellowship students, to our new cardiovascular disease fellows, to our administrative interns! The administrative intern role is new this year and is an outgrowth of Pauley’s recent growth and expanded research funding. Our inaugural interns are JT Taylor and Abby Warren, both currently enrolled in the Master of Health Administration graduate program at VCU’s College of Health Professions. This summer, they are responsible for not only learning about, but taking the lead on research development, project management, and operations oversight. We sat down with Abby and JT recently to hear how their summer at Pauley is going so far.

Where are you each from?
JT: Near Auckland, New Zealand.
Abby: Prince George, Virginia.

What is your educational background?
Abby: I went to James Madison University, where I earned a bachelor’s in health administration with a minor in in business. I’m a second-year student here at VCU in the health administration master’s program.
JT: I received my bachelor’s in health administration at Brigham Young University – Idaho. I’m also a second year MHA here at VCU!

What is your role here at Pauley, and what are some of your goals?
JT: We are contributing to the startup and implementation of community outreach programs, and helping get heart failure patients out of the ER while maintaining the care that they need.
Abby: Since Pauley hasn’t had an administrative intern before, they're still trying to figure out how to best utilize us. So far, we have been helping pull monthly expense reports, doing work for certain grants, and – especially exciting to us –assisting with the brand new state fund component [that will support Pauley’s programs] that starts in July!

What has been your favorite part of the internship so far?
Abby: My other internships have been more clinically based, so I was interacting with physicians, nurses, transporters, UPS workers kitchen staff – literally everyone in the hospital. I was in the clinic all day in different departments, where here I’m a bit more siloed. It's been interesting to kind of see a different side of healthcare, you could say! I think my favorite part is diving more into finances, which is something our program focuses a lot on. It’s been very interesting to learn more about revenue cycle and the research that goes on in an academic not-for-profit health system.
JT: I think my favorite thing so far I've been involved with is seeing how all the leaders collaborate, as well as being involved in the conversations that have a lot of impact for not only Pauley Heart Center, but also for the patients that we serve. Seeing leaders in the center, like Dr. Hundley, lead the discussions about what we want to do, what we need to do, and then asking guiding questions to help answer, “How do we get this done?” has been really, really cool.

What are your future plans?
JT: After this internship, I plan to continue learning how I can best fit in to leadership positions and take the skills that I can learn here into my future career aspirations.
Abby: I plan on first getting a residency, hopefully one of my choosing. I will actually start applying in the fall! After that, I hope to get a leadership role in a hospital or healthcare setting in the Richmond area.

Name one thing about yourself that you think surprises people.
Abby: I don’t think a lot of people know I’m a country girl. I’m from an area of Virginia that’s a very rural, where everyone is going hunting or fishing.
JT: I’ve swam in three out of the four world oceans! The Atlantic, Pacific, and the Indian. I’m not necessarily interested in swimming in the Arctic Ocean.

What’s your “walk-up song?”
JT: “Another One Bites the Dust” by Queen
Abby: “Thunderstruck” by AC/DC

What’s something you think more people should read?
Abby: Crucial Conversations: Tools for Talking When Stakes Are High by Kerry Patterson, Joseph Grenny, Ron McMillan, and Al Switzler
JT: Atomic Habits by James Clear

What’s the best advice you’ve ever received?
JT: My cousin, Helaman Burgess, once said, “It’s going to be your fault.” It’s kind of a double-edged sword, because when I’m thinking of blaming other people or not taking accountability, just knowing that it can be my fault shifts the accountability to me. It helps me think about how I can do better.
Abby: “Make your own path.” My dad always tells me that. I'm a big planner. I like to have a plan to my end goal, but in your career, it doesn't always go the way you want it to. It can be hard not to compare yourself to others. Everyone is on their own timeline, and your path will look different than other paths, but that doesn’t make you any less successful.