PHA’s Internship Program
What is PHA? | Why a PHA Internship? | What to Expect from the Internship?
see also Employment Opportunities
What is PHA?
At PHA, we are proud to call ourselves a “community of hope.” These are not idle words, but an inspiration for everything we do. We are a young organization that is changing the history of an illness. From simple beginnings – four women who met around a kitchen table in Florida in 1990 – PHA has evolved to include in its membership over 9,000 PH patients, caregivers, family and medical professionals, and an additional 33,000 friends and allies in the fight against PH. While we have grown considerably, PHA has stayed true to our roots and the vision and ingenuity of our founders: We continue to work every day to end the isolation that PH patients face, and find a cure for pulmonary hypertension.
The mission of the Pulmonary Hypertension Association is to find ways to prevent and cure pulmonary hypertension, and to provide hope for the pulmonary hypertension community through support, education, advocacy and awareness.
The vision of PHA is to improve the lives of those affected by pulmonary hypertension.
Why a PHA internship??
- PHA has experienced rapid growth over the past few years in terms of program, budget and staff size. Our successful approach to building our staff has been based on hiring talented and very bright people to run our programs. This has enabled us to build a staff of energetic, creative individuals who have fresh ideas, a willingness to learn, and positive attitude to the workplace. Our internship program in some instances allowed us to hire “tested” individuals who became familiar with our organization and our programs over the course of their respective internships, and who proved themselves to be assets.
- In order to meet the needs of our two major constituent groups: patients and their family members, and the medical professionals (physicians, nurses, researchers) involved in their care, and to add new programs, we find it highly essential and beneficial to enhance the work of our staff with the energy and talent historically provided by our interns. PHA interns help with both short- and long-term projects and programs and work with us to test out new and innovative programs.
- We invite you to take part in this highly successful organization. In 1999, PHA employed two part-time staff and had a budget of $137,000. By 2007, we grew to a staff of 25 and an income of $6,000,000. We are fairly unique in the health care nonprofit world in that we serve the two major constituencies noted above: patients and family members, AND the medical community. By doing so, 1+1 equals far more than 2. PHA is skilled in creating many beneficial intersections between the two communities which enrich the organization and the lives of those we serve.
- PHA offers a full spectrum of services that could be expected from almost any established health non-profit as evidenced by our departmental structure:
Advocacy and Awareness |
Development |
Finance |
International |
Medical Services |
Meeting Planning |
Print Services |
Volunteer Services |
Web & IT services |
|
The fact that we choose to tailor our internships allows for students from all academic backgrounds – from social sciences to business, from public health to web design – to find their niche in an environment that will not only enrich your academic coursework, but provide practical experience essential to launching a professional career.
What to expect from the internship?
As a respected team member you can expect to:
- Broaden your understanding of non-profit organizations and their management
- Hone your oral and written communication skills
- Play an active role in collaborations with staff, the PH community, and organizational allies
- Have the opportunity to participate in staff, patient, Board, and corporate meetings
We believe that interns should never feel that their role at an organization is “pigeonholed.” If you would like to design a project that helps you meet your educational goals, we will work with you to achieve this.
We welcome you to explore and apply for one of our many internship opportunities. For general information about PHA’s internship program, contact Jessica McKearin at internships@PHAssociation.org or 301-565-3004 x762.
