Internship/Fellowship Program

The Health Plan of San Mateo (HPSM) is a local non-profit health plan that offers health coverage to San Mateo County's underserved population. We currently serve more than 150,000 county residents through several programs, with the most of our members qualifying for coverage through Medi-Cal, the state's Medicaid program. HPSM has more than 300 employees and partners closely with clinicians and community organizations throughout the region.

Objective

Health Plan of San Mateo’s Internship/ Fellowship Program supports the recruitment, skill development, career growth, and retention of emerging managed care leaders by fostering a positive work environment with thoughtful and dedicated mentorship. The Internship/ Fellowship Program is a paid opportunity to contribute meaningfully to HPSM's organizational focus areas.

Internship/Fellowship Scope

This opportunity will provide the intern/fellow with:

• Knowledge and experience in the operation of a non-profit community-based health plan.
• Knowledge and experience in the development of programs and services that benefit our diverse membership.
• Professional experience working on a specific project important to HPSM and a chance to present recommendations through a final paper and/or presentation to HPSM leadership.

Required Skills & Knowledge

These are the qualifications typically needed to succeed in this position. However, you do not need to meet every requirement to apply.

• Currently enrolled or recent graduate of an undergraduate or graduate degree program in public health, public policy, business administration, social work, social sciences, communications, or related disciplines. Minimum 3.0 GPA.
• Basic understanding of the fundamentals of health care and the health care system.
• Solid written and verbal communication skills.
• Proficiency with Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, Outlook, and PowerPoint)

Project List & Description

Learning and Development Fellow: Provider Learning and Communications

HPSM’s Learning and Development team equips employees and providers with the resources, training, and growth opportunities to better serve our diverse member population. This fellow will be focused on both employee and provider resources and training. Employee-facing deliverables include developing job aides, creating a Knowledge Management System site, and developing accessibility tools and norms for communications. Provider-facing deliverables include drafting and distributing provider communications, project-managing our annual Provider Manual update, and creating provider onboarding tutorial videos.

 Health Services Fellow:  CalAim

This fellowship is an opportunity to learn how HPSM can improve the coordination of medical and social services for its members under the CalAIM initiative. CalAIM is a multi-year policy effort led by California's Department of Health Care Services (DHCS), to transform the delivery of Medi-Cal and create more coordinated, person-centered, and equitable health care. The fellow will interview various organizations involved in referring members to social services and map out their current process, challenges, and best practices. The fellow will then use their findings to make recommendations for enhancing the communication and collaboration among these organizations and ensuring that members receive the services they need in a timely and seamless manner.

  IT Operations Intern/Fellow: Core Operations and Security

HPSM’s IT Department maintains the technical backbone of the organization's operations, including managing a complex portfolio of systems and applications. The IT Operations department is a skilled and high-performing team who meet the needs of a largely remote workforce, and who are at the forefront of protecting HPSM member's protected health information from increasingly sophisticated cybersecurity attacks. As part of this project, the intern/fellow will gain experience with knowledgebase documentation management, inventory management, internal help desk and incident management operations, and license management. This intern/fellow position is a good fit for people interested in IT operations, system administration or security and gaining exposure to the unique demands of IT in a healthcare environment.

 Health Promotion Fellow: Community Engagement

HPSM's Health Promotion team manages programs, develops communication campaigns, leads outreach efforts, and provides education about available services that support healthy lifestyles for members. This fellowship will involve developing a framework for HPSM's community education activities and community events. The framework will help us better engage with our community and inform how we gather community input to support our work. This fellowship is a good fit for those interested in learning more about managed care, developing expertise in community engagement strategies/best practices, and helping HPSM become more deeply integrated with the local community in San Mateo County.

  Member Experience & Engagement Fellow: Vendor Partners & Digital Engagement

HPSM’s Population Health Department leads cross departmental work to ensure that HPSM members have the best possible experience when interacting directly with HPSM, our provider network, and vendor partners. This fellowship will aim to create a consistent and effective approach for managing vendors that provide services to HPSM members and a policy for digital communications with members via email and text. This fellowship is a great fit for those interested in digital health tools, member/patient engagement, and external vendor management strategies.

 Population Health Management Fellow: Powering Population Health with Data

HPSM’s Population Health Department utilizes a data driven approach to assess the health needs, utilization trends, and member experience of our diverse member population. This fellow will be involved in ensuring that our data meets the needs of users through the development of data visualization tools and data dashboards. These tools will support reporting and evaluation for different population health and member engagement programs. This fellowship is a great fit for those interested in turning large and complex data sets into meaningful insights that can advance health outcomes at a population level in San Mateo County.

 Provider Services Fellow: Network Access and Value-Based Investments

HPSM’s Provider Services Department is responsible for a breadth of activities that allow us to maintain a network of skilled, culturally competent health care professionals who provide high-quality services to our diverse membership. This fellow will co-develop a framework and process for HPSM to synthesize insights across many different data sources that evaluate members' access to care. The fellow will design analytic reports and an approach for embedding the insights from this analysis into day-to-day operations; this high-impact, high-visibility project will help ensure that a variety of decision-makers are well informed about network strengths and gaps in access to care for our members. It will inform how and where HPSM invests in recruiting new providers and invests in ventures with our current providers to support expanded access to care. This fellowship is a good fit for people interested in using quantitative and qualitative analysis to improve health care access, and those looking to learn more about value-based payment and investments. 

 Health Services Fellow:  Housing and Homelessness 

HPSM is seeking a fellow to work with the Housing and Homelessness Program Manager to create a comprehensive map of the housing systems in San Mateo County. This role involves conducting in-depth research, collecting, and analyzing data, and identifying key resources and gaps within the homelessness systems. The fellow will contribute to strategic collaboration with program teams to align housing initiatives with broader community health and well-being goals. The map will serve as an essential document for both internal and external stakeholders, helping to guide decision-making and policy development. This opportunity is ideal for someone passionate about community development and housing equity who wants to make a significant impact on the lives of residents.