A Focus On Opioid Data and Policies for Summer Internship

Mitchell “Mitch” Haynes knew he wanted a career in health care for as long as he can remember.

He wanted to be a brain surgeon when he was eight years old, stayed engaged in his science classes – specifically biology and chemistry – and then landed on pharmacy.

He’s currently working on getting his doctorate degree in pharmacy from UNC-Chapel Hill. He was inspired to apply for an internship here as a Clinical Pharmacist Intern to get the opportunity he lacks in the classroom.

“We don’t get a lot of exposure to payers in the classroom setting or through other parts of our program. It’s heavily focused on the clinical side – knowing diseases and how to treat them. That’s useful but there’s a lot more to the world of pharmacy,” Haynes said.

This summer he’s working with opioid data and analyzing how our policies have affected the number of prescriptions that have gone out. He’ll use the data to see what’s going well, and what isn’t. Then he’ll draft policies or come up with other new ways to combat the opioid epidemic.

“It’s more responsibility than I thought I would have as an intern but once I started doing it, I felt really comfortable,” he said.

Even though he’s just over two weeks into the program, Mitch said the experience is preparing him for his future career. “Having worked in a pharmacy before, I’ve experienced frustration about insurance companies – why things aren’t paid and not getting the clarity to understand why,” he said.

“I’m learning why rules are in place, the proper steps to navigate those rules to get approvals, understanding timelines of approvals – all of those things are really applicable no matter what my job is going to be after school.”

And the perks are pretty good, too. “The cafeterias are really nice, the gym is great, and I love that I can walk around campus, use the walking trails and stretch my legs.”

Mitch is unsure exactly what he’ll do once he graduates school in two years. He’s thinking of working for a health insurance company, a pharmaceutical company, working in the hospital as a clinical pharmacist – the options are endless when you’re as bright and excited as Mitch!

Are you interested in learning more about the programs we offer for students and recent grads? We offer two programs to help students build relevant work skills, develop business acumen and make a difference – the summer internship program for rising college seniors and master’s students and the two-year Rotational Development Program for recent college graduates.

 

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