Intern Perspective: Kathryn Perkins, AMCP Foundation/AbbVie Specialized Internship

This summer, I had the incredible opportunity to participate in the AMCP Foundation/AbbVie, Inc. Specialized Internship in Health Outcomes. During the AbbVie component of this internship, I was immersed into a bustling health economics and outcomes research (HEOR) department with top professionals in the field. While the AMCP Foundation aspect provided countless opportunities for enhancing my managed care knowledge and experience.  This internship has opened countless doors and equipped me with knowledge and technical skills for a strong start to my early professional career.

This summer I spent 10 incredible weeks at the AbbVie headquarters in Illinois working with the Rheumatology HEOR Strategy team. AbbVie’s leadership and my manager went above and beyond to teach us about enhancing our careers through a biweekly career development series and organizing meetings with cross functional partners. These meetings allowed me to learn about the true impact of HEOR and opportunities for innovation within the field. As my capstone project, I conducted a targeted literature review and presented my findings to cross functional teams where I saw the true business impact of my project. My AbbVie HEOR co-interns and I made the most of the summer by going on adventures in Chicago throughout this internship.

The AMCP side of this internship gave me the tools to enhance my understanding of managed care through a robust mentorship program, journal clubs, and the Fundamentals of Managed Care Pharmacy professional certificate program. My AMCP mentor has given me incredible opportunities to learn about health plan structure, types of insurance, innovative payment models, and how HEOR research is utilized in managed care. I had the opportunity to further my presentation and literature evaluation skills through my own journal club on nationwide trends in hospitalization, medical costs, and mortality for asthma after introduction of biologics. The Fundamentals in Managed Care Pharmacy certificate has provided me a foundational understanding of the key aspects of managed care and furthered my understanding of the US healthcare system.

To round out this incredible internship experience, I will have the opportunity to present my targeted literature review as a poster at the AMCP Nexus Conference in Orlando, Florida this fall. During the conference, I will be able to build on the knowledge I gained throughout this internship by attending sessions and meeting different managed care professionals.  

I am eternally grateful for the opportunities I have been given throughout the AMCP Foundation Internship Program. I cannot put into words how grateful I am for the unwavering support from my manager Patrick Zueger. The mentorship I received from Pankaj Patel, Kateryna Onishchenko, and the HEOR team at AbbVie has made a huge impact on my career. My AMCP Mentor, Josephine Tran, has gone above and beyond in her support of my professional development during this internship. A special thank you to Ebony Clay, Paula Eichenbrenner, Elene Wogedersgne, Kenneth Garcia, and everyone at the AMCP Foundation for making this internship an unmatched experience for students to grow as well-rounded industry and managed care professionals.

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