Full Circle in NYC Public Hospital Healthcare System
“I have always worked in non-profit and the public sector. But I remember a time when I told myself I was going to work in a hospital, and that is where I am.” That is what April Fowler, Director of Regulatory Affairs at Metropolitan, part of the NYC Health + Hospitals public healthcare system, shared after her headshot.
“To back up, I started college at an HBCU, North Carolina A & T State University in Business Administration. I wasn’t quite sure what I wanted to do, but I knew I had to finish college. I am the first in the family to graduate.
About a year and a half into my college career I decided to move closer to home, transferring to Baruch College in the New York City University system. I majored in Public Administration. I had this natural desire to do something in the public sector, specifically in the NYC government, and I got a good feel for public service working as an intern at New York City Housing Preservation and Development, and later at a community non-profit, which gave me good exposure as a staff grants coordinator.
I was naturally drawn to work in a non-profit public hospital system and came into hospital work as a grant manager for the Project Liberty Program around 2003. This was a grants-based program offering crisis counseling to help those who were affected by 9/11 in NYC. It was a big program! Once I was managing those funds, I was given more grants to manage for a combined portfolio of 50 million dollars.
In 2013, I moved out of the hospital setting for a while and into managed care health plans, which gave me a larger perspective on the interaction between health plans and providers. I got a good understanding of how hospitals bill health plans for inpatient and outpatient services. I learned what happens when those bills come over and how they get adjudicated. During that time, I acted as a liaison between the managed care plan and healthcare providers.
Now I’ve come full circle, and I am back at the same hospital from 2003. I am in Regulatory Affairs as Director and I am loving it.
I also had a summer internship at a New York City government agency with a great director. She pushed me to stay on after the internship, encouraging me to go to a senior executive and ask for a job. That was nothing I had ever done. I asked and they found a job for me! I am still thankful to my director for teaching me how to ask for what I wanted.
My advice is, don't be afraid to ask! You don’t know what your potential is if you don’t get out there.
I was so looking forward to getting a professional headshot. It was an excellent experience boosting my confidence. Sometimes we are our own worst critic and get concerned about some of our features. I can be overly conscious of that but it didn’t come into play because I felt so empowered. It was the way Alissa made me feel. I felt special! She helped me own the moment like a celebrity!
The images are amazing. I loved how she captured my smile. I am 100% pleased with my results!”