For the third summer, Unity Point has offered its paid summer internship program to anyone interested in the medical field. Each year they’ve enhanced the program to provide students with an even more hands-on educational experience.

This year, 19 summer interns are gaining experience in different aspects of the facility.

Currently there are five students from Fort Dodge Senior High, three from St. Edmond, one from Southeast Valley, one from Manson Northwest Webster, four from Iowa State, including three originally from Fort Dodge, two from Northern Iowa, both from Fort Dodge, two from the University of Iowa, both also from Fort Dodge, and one former Fort Dodge student who attends Charleston Southern University.

“The internship gives students the opportunity to build relationships, make professional connections, develop workplace skills and expand their understanding of healthcare across the continuum of care,” said Molly Hiveley, marketing communications specialist for UnityPoint Health Fort Dodge. “It’s also a valuable opportunity for students to explore potential career paths and determine whether a particular interest area is the right fit. We’ve had interns begin the program thinking they wanted to work in surgical services, for example, only to realize another area of healthcare better matched their interests.”

Some of the interest areas for this year’s interns include clinical internships in the emergency room, dietitian/wellness/diabetes center, inpatient nursing, occupational/physical therapy, specialty and family medicine clinics and cardiac rehabilitation/respiratory therapy. Non-clinical internships include administration, health information (coding), human resources, information technology, maintenance, marketing and communications, nutritional services and social work/patient advocate/spiritual care.

Interns need to be at least 16 years old and a high school junior or senior, a college student or a non-traditional student.

Interns completed an online application, submitted a resume and at least one letter of recommendation. Candidates who advanced in the selection process then participated in an interview before final interns were selected.

“Multiple different aspects went into my decision to do the UnityPoint Summer Internship. I focused on what my future goals would involve, my values, my dedication to learning, and so forth,” said Ellis, who recently graduated from Fort Dodge Senior High and will attend Iowa Central. “Those same goals guided me to apply for the internship because I knew it would be an amazing opportunity to obtain healthcare experience. This internship will be extremely beneficial for me in the future because it allows me to gain healthcare experience in different departments as well as observe several staff positions that I could potentially work my way up to.”

Ellis said she’s learned a lot about the myriad of procedures, processes and machines that are capable of keeping someone breathing, fixing heart rhythms or even replacing organs to keep the body functioning.

She added that all the staff have been more than willing to let interns follow them around all day and that they actually teach what is happening and how they are trying to find solutions to problems.

Waychoff is a senior at Charleston Southern and a FDSH graduate. She is completing her internship with the cardiology and surgical service teams.

“Everyone at UnityPoint Health — Fort Dodge has been so kind, welcoming and willing to teach,” said Waychoff. “I’ve loved learning things you simply can’t gain without hands-on experience. It’s been incredible to see firsthand not only what the team is doing, but why they’re doing it.”

She plans to attend graduate school and become a physician associate.

Session one of the summer internship began on June 1 and ran until June 26. The second session runs July 6 to Aug. 7. Interns work between 10 and 20 hours per week, depending on their schedule and department.

Every intern’s experience looks different because they identify their areas of interest during the application and interview process, explained Hiveley. UnityPoint — Fort Dodge works to match students with departments that align with their career goals, she added.

“This internship program allows UnityPoint Health to connect with future healthcare professionals before they enter the workforce,” said Leah Glasgo, president at UnityPoint Health — Fort Dodge. “We hope students gain greater clarity about their career goals, build lasting relationships with our team and have a positive experience that encourages them to return to the organization after completing their education.”

The program has already made an impact, added Glasgo. She said several former interns have returned to UnityPoint in full-time positions.

Jasmine Lynem, a Fort Dodge Senior High School graduate, participated in UnityPoint Health — Fort Dodge’s first summer internship program in 2024, gaining hands-on experience with the information technology team while completing Iowa Central Community College’s Computer Networking Technology program.

After graduating, Lynem accepted a full-time information technology technical support specialist position at UnityPoint Health — Fort Dodge in January 2025.

“This internship was a great entryway to a full-time position,” Lynem said. “There weren’t many internship opportunities — especially in a smaller town like Fort Dodge — so I was really grateful.”