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Crucial contributions: Katlyn Roland using HADM degree to improve access to patient care in East Alabama

When you receive life-changing treatment at hospitals and medical clinics, it’s not just the doctors and nurses who are responsible – you’re also experiencing the work Health Services Administration professionals like Katlyn Roland do every day to ensure quality care.

Roland, a 2017 Health Services Administration (HADM) graduate, oversees graduate medical education at East Alabama Health. She uses her degree and passion for health care to place the best doctors in training within the community.

“While I knew my calling may not be in a direct clinical role, I discovered that I could still make a meaningful impact on patient care through the business and administrative side of health care,” Roland said. “HADM at Auburn is not such a large program where you're going to get lost in the department. They are invested in your career success, and they intentionally are advocating for you. I think that's important and that's rare to find in a large university.”

Roland first discovered the administrative side of health care out of necessity. As a first-generation college student who worked her way through school, she took a position at Auburn Pediatric and Adult Medicine. That work experience not only built her resume, but her excitement to contribute to health care in meaningful ways behind the scenes.

“When you’re younger or not familiar with health care, you don’t think about all the other players that bring it all together,” Roland said. “There’s a lot of people who are successful in health care administration, especially if you’re passionate about health care, but not necessarily called to take care of patients.”

The HADM program in the Department of Political Science is designed to prepare graduates with the professional expertise required to manage and lead organizations in health care. The program emphasizes skills such as patient-centered care, information technology, cutting-edge research and strong management.

In Roland’s office at East Alabama Health, she still keeps books from her courses such as “Crucial Conversations,” “Made to Stick” and “Good to Great.”

Roland said those concepts go beyond the day-to-day skills she learned in class and have helped her make a lasting and intentional impression on everyone she’s worked with.

“Your professional relationships and your reputation will follow you throughout your career. Treat people with kindness and respect, be someone others can rely on and always be willing to work hard and continue learning. You never know when your paths will cross again, when someone may open a door for you, or when you may be in a position to open a door for someone else.”

Katlyn Roland '17

After graduating from Auburn, Roland worked in a position in the hospital’s foundation, then in credentialing, working with physicians, onboarding and ensuring the hospital hired the best providers.

Roland currently serves as the director of graduate medical education, overseeing the residency programs in psychiatry, internal medicine and transitional year. In this role, she supports the hospital’s accredited residency programs, the medical students completing their clinical rotations and the faculty who teach them.

“Graduate medical education elevates the quality of care that we're providing to our patients,” Roland said. “When physicians are training other physicians, that has them on their A game. They're informed of the latest articles, publications, and they're really bringing an enhanced learning experience because they are teaching at the bedside.”

Roland also supports executive leadership on strategies for growing the graduate medical education program to benefit the community. From exploring rural health to decreasing the physician shortage, community is a crucial component of Roland’s work.  

In Auburn, East Alabama Health partners with the Edward Via College of Osteopathic Medicine (VCOM). VCOM-Auburn’s mission to improve health care in Alabama aligns with Roland’s goal at East Alabama Health – to create a supportive environment for graduates to make a difference, as Auburn did for Roland.

“One of our goals is to grow our own physicians here in our community,” Roland said. “The Auburn-Opelika area is growing rapidly, and expanding graduate medical education is one of the most impactful ways we can help improve access to health care and build a strong physician pipeline for the future. Everyone has a role in that.” 

Learn more about Health Services Administration at the College of Liberal Arts website.

Tags: Political Science Alumni