While studying pharmacology at Maulana Azad Medical College in New Delhi, India, Anurag Virmani became interested in the inner workings of the healthcare system.
I realized I want to be involved in those major decisions that impact healthcare, not just within the spectrum of your patients, he said. I understand that to make the impact I want, I have to be involved in management.
After receiving his doctor of medicine degree, Virmani came to the U.S. to begin his business studies. He is expected to graduate from the 窪蹋勛圖厙 Weatherhead School of Management with a MBA degree in the spring of 2024.
Upon graduating, I would love to work in a healthcare consulting position, he said.
Over the summer, Virmani started an internship with The MetroHealth System in Cleveland, where hes been able to gain real-world experience as a business strategy intern in the IT Department. He is still interning with the healthcare system for the fall semester.
In this role, Virmani works under his supervisor, Ashish Masih, executive director of transformation, optimization and business applications at MetroHealth, on a variety of projects.
Its very broad as its a big institution, he said. Ive had exposure to a lot of different projects.
Most of those involve Virmani researching and creating models on different technologies and systems that could be brought into the hospital for use. One of the bigger projects was analyzing the cost of onboarding and using the Epic electronic health record software in the hospital. Another on how to integrate artificial intelligence (AI) tools.
As an intern, Virmani said hes had the chance to report his findings and talk to leaders in the MetroHealth community.
The best thing about being an intern is getting your hands dirty and getting to know more about the business, he said. You get to be involved in many different things and learn from as many people as you can.
Virmani has been able to use a lot of the skills and tools learned in the classroom at his internshipfrom statistics to marketing, being an effective leader and understanding business strategyto name a few.
The strategy exposure from the case studies we did in class really helped me to understand the business and how it works, he said. In the LEAD Course, we learn how to be empathetic and a good, active listener, which helped me in the Epic cost project when I had to interview people.
The MBA program also prepares students for working in a team setting, which Virmani said has been useful at the hospital.
It really helps you to understand how to use the skills you have and recognize everybody elses strengths, he said. You learn how to push people to nourish their strengths and be there for each other on a team.
When asked what he loves most about Weatherhead, Virmani says its the community.
People are looking out for your best interests and it really shows, he said. Even the alums Ive reached out to are awesome. I really appreciate that and I feel thankful to have that support.