Paula Masters, DrPH, is Vice President of Health Programs at Ballad Health, an integrated healthcare system serving 29 counties of Northeast Tennessee, Southwest Virginia, Northwest North Carolina and Southeast Kentucky. She recently served as a field placement mentor with the Region IV Public Health Training Center. In this interview, Dr. Masters shares about that experience.
Bethany Daigle, the student you mentored, developed a comprehensive legislative playbook that was used to frame Ballad Health’s policy and advocacy agenda. How did hosting a field placement student benefit your organization?
Having a competent, well vetted student is a tremendous asset to any organization. There are many projects that need to be accomplished, however are many times not given priority due to lack of human resources. This experiential learning platform allows the organization to truly add capacity and optimize works streams.
As a seasoned public health leader, you’ve stated that you are “extremely committed to provision of experiential learning experiences for students”. How does serving in this capacity affect you? What can mentors get out of these relationships?
It allows me to continue to “sharpen my tools” with fresh perspectives and diversity. It forces us as leaders to not be complacent, yet to invite innovation into our vision and strategy. I feel confident that I learn as much, if not more, than the student during our time together.
How did working with you and Ballad Health shape Bethany’s professional growth and trajectory?
Bethany was given projects and tasks that were intended to push and shape her as a leader. Many students come in with a wonderful set of competencies, yet they lack the leadership skills to fully implement. This is where we as mentors must focus our attention to allow them to channel and test so they may gain confidence and expand into a new level of professionalism.
Editor’s note: Following graduation, Bethany was hired full time by Ballad Health as a Program Analyst for the Enterprise Program Management Office.