Public Health & Community Impact Intern

JOB TITLE: Public Health & Community Impact Intern

REPORTS TO: VP Government Affairs

DEPARTMENT: Corporate Strategy

FLSA STATUS: Hourly (Non-Exempt)

JOB TYPE: Internship

WORK ARRANGEMENT: Hybrid – Field-Based

TRAVEL: Approximately 30-50%

RATE: $20 to $25 per hour

About Healthix
Healthix is the largest public health information exchange (HIE) in New York State, securely connecting thousands of healthcare providers, hospitals, health plans, and community organizations to improve the quality, safety, and efficiency of care. Through the secure exchange of health information, Healthix helps ensure that clinicians, care teams, and public health partners have access to the data they need to make informed decisions and deliver better outcomes for the communities they serve.

As part of our ongoing organizational transformation, Healthix is expanding its focus beyond data exchange to making health information more actionable and impactful for healthcare providers, community partners, and public health initiatives. This transformation reflects our commitment to strengthening community partnerships, improving health equity, and supporting innovative approaches that connect healthcare with community-based services.

Through initiatives such as Healthix Connects, our internal volunteer and community engagement program, we are deepening our relationships with local organizations and creating opportunities for our team to actively support healthier, safer communities.

Joining Healthix means becoming part of a mission-driven organization that is shaping the future of health information sharing while building stronger connections between healthcare systems and the communities they serve.

THE ROLE:

We’re looking for students who are curious, compassionate, analytical, and genuinely interested in their communities.

Ideal candidates will:

• Be currently pursuing an undergraduate or graduate degree in Public Health, Community Health, Population Health, Epidemiology, Health Policy, Health Sciences, Social Sciences, Healthcare Administration, Data Analytics, or a related field.
• Have a strong interest in health equity, community health, maternal health, behavioral or mental health, healthcare access, or social drivers of health.
• Be comfortable engaging with people from different communities, backgrounds, and organizations.
• Have strong communication, listening, research, and organizational skills.
• Demonstrate an interest in working with data and developing analytical skills.
• Be comfortable conducting field-based outreach and traveling throughout New York City.

• Bring initiative, professionalism, curiosity, and a willingness to learn.

Knowledge of New York City neighborhoods and communities, additional language skills, prior community service or volunteer experience, and familiarity with public health research or data are highly valued but not required.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES:

Make an Impact Where Health Happens

What You’ll Do

Public health isn’t only about what the data tells us. It’s about understanding the people, neighborhoods, resources, and experiences behind the numbers.

Healthix is seeking Public Health & Community Impact Interns who are passionate about New York City, health equity, and making a meaningful difference in the communities we serve.

This is a hands-on opportunity for students interested in public health, population health, health equity, community health, epidemiology, healthcare, or related fields. Interns will spend time in the community—connecting with organizations, participating in outreach, learning directly from community partners, and helping Healthix better understand the healthcare needs and resources available across New York communities.

Interns will then bring those community insights together with healthcare, demographic, public health, and other available data to help identify gaps, trends, opportunities, and potential solutions.

You’ll have an opportunity to see public health from both sides: the data and the community.

Community Engagement & Field Work

• Serve as a “boots on the ground” member of Healthix’s Public Health & Community Partnerships team.
• Conduct outreach to community-based organizations, public health organizations, healthcare providers, behavioral health organizations, advocacy groups, and other community partners.
• Attend community meetings, health events, coalition meetings, forums, and outreach activities throughout New York City.
• Build relationships with community partners and learn directly from organizations serving diverse populations.
• Gather qualitative information about community health needs, barriers to care, available services, resource gaps, and emerging concerns.
• Help identify organizations and community resources that could become meaningful Healthix partners.
• Document outreach, stakeholder feedback, community observations, and potential opportunities for collaboration.

Public Health Research & Analysis

• Research healthcare needs, public health trends, community resources, and social drivers of health affecting New York communities.
• Assist with quantitative and qualitative analysis to compare what healthcare and public health data indicate with what community partners are experiencing on the ground.
• Help identify disparities between community healthcare needs and the availability or accessibility of services and resources.
• Review demographic, population health, healthcare utilization, community resource, and other relevant datasets.
• Assist with developing community profiles, resource maps, summaries, presentations, and reports.
• Help translate findings into clear stories and insights that can support annual Community Impact and Public Health Preparedness Report.

Initiatives You’ll Help Support

Interns may contribute to several of Healthix’s current and emerging public health priorities, including:

• Maternal & Infant Health Equity Collaborative (MIHEC) – supporting efforts to better understand and address disparities affecting maternal and infant health.
• Behavioral and Mental Health – engaging behavioral health organizations and community partners, with particular attention to teens and young adults.
• Health Equity & Access – identifying differences in healthcare access, utilization, outcomes, and resource availability across communities.
• Social Drivers of Health – exploring how factors such as housing, food access, transportation, economic conditions, environment, and community resources intersect with health.
• Other emerging public health and community initiatives across New York City and surrounding communities.

What You’ll Learn

This internship is designed to provide meaningful exposure to the real-world practice of public health. Interns will have opportunities to:

• Experience community-based public health work firsthand.
• Develop stakeholder engagement and relationship-building skills.
• Apply classroom knowledge to real healthcare and community challenges.
• Gain experience conducting qualitative and quantitative public health analysis.
• Learn how healthcare data can be used to understand population health and health disparities.
• Work alongside healthcare, public health, data, government affairs, and community professionals.
• Learn how community voices and data can work together to influence programs, partnerships, and healthcare decision-making.
• Contribute to initiatives intended to create measurable impact in New York communities.