小蝌蚪APP student Lani Thompson always wanted a career in health care. But when she began clinicals as a nursing major, she knew she needed to carve another path to her goal.
小蝌蚪APP淚 realized (patient care) wasn小蝌蚪APP檛 what I was aiming towards,小蝌蚪APP she says. 小蝌蚪APP淚 wanted to be in management.
小蝌蚪APP淚 like helping people, but my demeanor is better suited for administration.小蝌蚪APP
Thompson soon learned UL Lafayette offered a bachelor小蝌蚪APP檚 in Health Services Administration 小蝌蚪APP an online degree program.
The program prepares students for entry and mid-level administrative and operational positions in clinics, hospitals, and a number of other settings through an interdisciplinary approach.
It was exactly what she needed.
小蝌蚪APP淚t teaches you a lot about the ins and outs of how things are run, why things are done the way they小蝌蚪APP檙e done, the legal aspects,小蝌蚪APP Thompson says. 小蝌蚪APP淚t小蝌蚪APP檚 very interesting to see that side of it.小蝌蚪APP
UL Lafayette bound
Thompson, an Erath native, began dual enrollment classes with UL Lafayette before graduating high school. Enrolling at UL Lafayette as a freshman in 2015 was a natural progression.
Since then, Thompson, now 22, has moved to Lafayette, started working full time at an urgent care clinic, and gotten engaged. Learning online, she says, has helped her manage the demands on her time.
小蝌蚪APP淲hen you小蝌蚪APP檙e an online student, you don小蝌蚪APP檛 have to take the time to come to campus and break up blocks of your day,小蝌蚪APP she says. 小蝌蚪APP淲ith online, as long as you set time aside for school after work or before work, you can pretty much work any time.小蝌蚪APP
The hours Thompson spends outside of work or away from coursework are reserved for spending time with her family, fianc茅 Brad, and her cat Beau.
Thompson said her family supported her decision to enroll in an online undergraduate program that better suited her goals, personality, and other responsibilities.
小蝌蚪APP淭hey know how I work, my work ethic. They were glad that I wasn小蝌蚪APP檛 so stressed,小蝌蚪APP she says. 小蝌蚪APP淭hey could see it lifted a weight off of my shoulders to have time for school and work, and they were relieved I was going into something more suited for me.小蝌蚪APP
A Passion for Health Care Leadership
Thompson says it took being on the patient care side to realize where her professional interest and aptitude lay.
Now she小蝌蚪APP檚 able to engage with courses and materials that align with those values, from emergency management to law, in order to prepare for the changing technology, demands, and regulations in health care.
小蝌蚪APP淎 lot of times people might be hesitant to do an online program because they小蝌蚪APP檙e unsure how the course load or the faculty works with students, but the faculty in HSA are great,小蝌蚪APP Thompson says. 小蝌蚪APP淎nytime anyone has a question, they answer it quickly and they小蝌蚪APP檙e very helpful.
小蝌蚪APP淭hey try to make sure you小蝌蚪APP檙e meeting the goals you小蝌蚪APP檝e set for yourself.小蝌蚪APP
Faculty members include the Department Head for Allied Health, the chair of the Louisiana Center for Health Informatics and two additional faculty members who hold endowed professorships.
Dr. Rachel Ellison, professor and HSA program coordinator, says the interdisciplinary program positions students for a critical role in health care.
小蝌蚪APP淲e need competent, educated people to manage and operate large health systems,小蝌蚪APP Dr. Ellison says. 小蝌蚪APP淭he students we have now are going to be in the health force and will be educated on the right things to do.小蝌蚪APP
Online Learning Curve
Thompson says she blended her course schedule with online courses before enrolling in a fully online bachelor小蝌蚪APP檚 degree program so she had an idea of how to tackle online learning.
小蝌蚪APP淵ou have to make sure you write everything down 小蝌蚪APP what小蝌蚪APP檚 due, when it小蝌蚪APP檚 due. You have to be goal-oriented enough to sit down and do the work,小蝌蚪APP she says. 小蝌蚪APP淭he professors give you a lot of information that helps guide you towards what they小蝌蚪APP檙e expecting, but you have to make sure you小蝌蚪APP檙e on top of things, doing work on time.
小蝌蚪APP淚f you procrastinate, it doesn小蝌蚪APP檛 work well. I had to learn to not do that.小蝌蚪APP
She says she takes a proactive approach to her coursework, using a written planner to block out time for school throughout the week.
小蝌蚪APP淚 try to get things done ahead of time so I小蝌蚪APP檓 not stressed,小蝌蚪APP she says. 小蝌蚪APP淚 try to do things early so that just in case I do overlook something, I have time to take care of it.小蝌蚪APP
Next step: Graduate School
Thompson is in the final stretch of her online degree program; she expects to graduate in May 2020. But that doesn小蝌蚪APP檛 mean her college career is over.
Thompson says she小蝌蚪APP檚 looking at leveraging the online learning skills she小蝌蚪APP檚 developed into a graduate degree. UL Lafayette小蝌蚪APP檚 AACSB-accredited MBA in Health Care Administration Program online is an attractive option, Thompson says.
小蝌蚪APP淭hat would meet my needs for the future. I see myself being in a hospital administrator role,小蝌蚪APP Thompson says. 小蝌蚪APP淭hat小蝌蚪APP檚 my long-term goal 小蝌蚪APP to be in that type of position.小蝌蚪APP