Health and Human Services News

Ready for big opportunities

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When Mary Finzel of West Plains earned her undergraduate degree in psychology, she never considered social work.

In her mind, social work majors were case workers.

But when she decided to pursue a master’s degree, Finzel realized that a master’s in social work could open so many doors.

“I could do so many things. I could be a clinical manager, a program director. I can work in any kind of advocacy for people, social justice advocacy. I could go into industrial facilities, factories and help with human resources,” she said.

Finding support in an online program

As an untraditional student returning to school, Finzel was attracted to the fact Missouri State offers a Master of Social Work that can be earned 100% online.

She had trepidations because she’d never completed a degree online, but felt she had the discipline to do it.

“Then I realized I really liked it because it was very convenient for work and personal life. I didn’t have a set schedule that I had to go by, other than when my assignments were due,” she said.

“I don’t like being restrained to one position, I want to be able to do multiple positions and wear multiple hats, and so that’s what really pulled me to the degree in social work.”

The mother of two chose Missouri State because of its accreditation, history and stellar reputation.

The professors were supportive and provided a lot of feedback.

“Professors were always available for communication through email, Zoom, phone calls, just whatever I needed. I had some personal family issues going on in the beginning … and I communicated that to my professors and they were more than willing to give me some grace. Since it’s all online, that feedback from the professors is really important because it lets you know what you’re doing well in, what you need to improve on,” she said.

Another strength of the program was the diverse lineup of classes — there’s a broad spectrum of information.

Driven to help others

The 44-year-old graduated in May 2022 with her Master of Social Work.

A Mountain View native, for the past few years she has worked as an Integrated Co-Occurring Disorder specialist. She works in a substance abuse treatment center for adolescents.

Upon graduation, her title changed to diagnostician. She received a promotion and pay raise. The degree had already paid off.

Finzel has always wanted to work in some capacity helping others.

“I had a lot of trauma in my childhood and mental health runs in my family,” she said. “I have two sons with special needs. … I decided I wanted to be available to help people in the way that I needed help whenever I was younger. Because I’m from a small town, there just wasn’t those services available in my area, and so I wanted to be able to have that positive impact on others the way I didn’t have those resources when I was younger.”

Explore social work at Missouri State

He gained the tools he needed to succeed in corporate health

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Matt Hancock earned a bachelor’s in exercise science, became a personal trainer and managed a gym.

The Springfield native eyed MSU’s health promotion and wellness management graduate program because he wanted to make change on a larger scale.

“I really wanted to get into corporate health,” Hancock said. “It has been blowing up over the past couple of years. There’s a lot of opportunity. Companies are realizing healthier employees are more productive, too.”

Working while completing his degree

Missouri State’s program was attractive because it was flexible and offered a mix of seated and online courses. He worked full time at Mercy and was able to go to school part time and tackle his degree in chunks.

“I really liked the core classes because they let me learn a lot more about the direct areas I was going into, such as how to build up a program, how to look at a population health approach. My undergrad was more studying facts. My master’s was more applicable to everyday life and translating into a working situation,” Hancock said.

As part of a clinical requirement for his master’s, Hancock completed a 420-hour internship at Bass Pro working for the company’s wellbeing program.

He added on a certificate in health education because Hancock felt it would give him an edge in the job market and it did.

Shortly after graduating in spring 2019, Hancock left Mercy and joined Prime Inc., as Driver Health and Fitness Coordinator.

Matt Hancock giving presentation at work.
At Prime, Inc., Matt Hancock oversees programs that improve employee health.

Making a difference

At Prime, Hancock was able to use the knowledge he learned in his master’s courses to directly impact driver health.

He revamped the wellness program and reaches nearly 8,000 drivers.

“In the past, Prime focused on a 13-week weight loss program for drivers,” Hancock said. “We have evolved to focus on a whole person virtual approach now. When COVID entered our lives, we had to look at our health initiatives in a different way. In-person services were no longer an option, so in October 2020 we began designing our own online wellness platform using a learning management system called Learn Dash.”

“The master’s program really helped prepare me for my career by giving me the base of knowledge I needed. I didn’t know anything about corporate health when I started. I learned a lot to prepare for the position I am in now.”

Through this platform they created health risk assessments, collected health data and designed and evaluated programs more efficiently to suit drivers needs based on the health risks that are prevalent in the occupation, such as fatigue and back pain.

A holistic approach to employee health

The platform will allow them to offer fitness, nutrition and mental health programs around-the-clock to fit drivers’ unique schedules over the road.

“All aspects will be gamified so we can create an engaging, competitive atmosphere by offering points to our drivers for completing certain health-related activities and tasks,” Hancock said.

Drivers can access virtual personal training and nutritional counseling with their registered dietitian.

Taking a holistic approach, they also addressed:

  • Mental health, which is so important during the pandemic.
  • Created a tobacco cessation program since 60 percent of drivers use tobacco products, said Hancock.
  • Formed a healthy driver task force and put together exercises that drivers can do at truck stops or using equipment on the truck
  • Showed employees how to make healthier choices on the road.

“Not everyone is interested in losing weight or eating right, but if we have several initiatives they can focus on, then we can let them hone-in on one that helps them lead a healthier life,” Hancock said.  “It has gotten a lot of traction. We are starting to see improvement in employee health. It’s really a rewarding job. This is what I’ve been wanting to do for many years. I want to make a big impact on driver health, satisfaction, happiness and lifestyle.”

Explore a master’s degree in health promotion and wellness management

Physician from Nepal found new future in MSU’s public health program

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Agarwal was raised in Kathmandu, Nepal, and was a physician before she decided to come to America to pursue a master’s degree in public health.

“I have always been passionate about public health,” she said. “Even as a medical student, I  knew I was going to get a degree in public health. I became sure about it while I was working in Nepal at a private hospital as a health care executive. In this role, I felt I was making a bigger impact on people’s lives than I ever did practicing as a physician.”

Becoming a Bear

Karishma standing next to the MSU vine wall outside the PSU.

Agarwal discovered Missouri State’s Master’s of Public Health online. She wanted to live in Missouri to be close to her sister who lives in Springfield.

“I applied to a lot of schools in Missouri and ended up choosing Missouri State after reviewing the courses they offered. My decision was solidified after exchanging a few emails with the program director, Dr. David Claborn. It sounded like a great fit for me,” Agarwal said.

She was a graduate assistant and interned at the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services in the Maternal and Child Health Services division.

“During my internship, I had the opportunity to apply several concepts that I learned in my program,” she said. “The project that I worked on as an intern helped me abundantly in my first job right after graduation.”

“The project that I worked on as an intern helped me abundantly in my first job right after graduation.”

Despite being in a new country, Agarwal found Missouri State welcoming and loved the program.

Her advisor worked with Agarwal to sign up for electives based on her needs and interests.

Agarwal enjoyed the variety of classes – her favorite being international health. When she was in class, there happened to be seven international students and they all shared their perspectives on health care in their home countries.

The professors were friendly, approachable and always willing to advise and guide her. They were experts in their field, she said.

‘I feel more confident in myself and my skills’

Agarwal graduated in December 2017 and is fulfilling her dream of working in public health.

“I recently landed a job with Burrell Behavioral Health as the Clinic and Community Services Manager and I am so grateful to all my professors who mentored me and prepared me for this challenging role,” Agarwal said. “With the experience I gained as a student, and having the additional opportunities to be involved in a lot of research with my advisor, I feel more confident in myself and my skills.”

Putting it all together

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It started after high school when he witnessed a fatal vehicle accident, which led him to become a volunteer firefighter in Taney County, Missouri in 2004.

The first piece fell into place when Meadows discovered that he loved being a firefighter and enrolled at Ozarks Technical Community College to earn an associate degree in fire science.

While still finishing this degree in 2009, Meadows was hired by Strafford Fire Department in Greene County, Missouri when they first became a full-time career department.

“It was a lot of fun and I got to be part of the department as they were defining themselves,” he said.

Soon, as Meadows realized that firefighters respond to more medical calls than to fires, he began to identify what he liked about this line of work.

“A lot of their response has transitioned into medical calls over the years as more people are needing medical care and buildings are being built better,” the 34-year-old said.

He earned an EMT license in 2009 and the next piece of the puzzle fell into place.

Switching careers

Kyle Meadows in paramedic training room.
Kyle Meadows made a career change in 2012, switching from firefighter to paramedic.

As much as he loved being a firefighter, he did not love the salary that came with working at a small fire department. Meadows also discovered he loved the medical side. So he began to seek a way to advance his professional career.

As pieces of his puzzle began to fit together, Meadows got married and started a family; he knew he wanted more lifelong earning potential. In 2012, he completed his fire science degree, left the fire department and enrolled in paramedic courses at OTC.

That same year, he started working on an ambulance at CoxHealth where his career began to define itself for him. He earned a paramedic license in 2013 and his associate paramedic degree in January of 2014.

“I had found my calling. This is what I really want to do. I want to advance my career in health care. I realized I could not elevate myself without a better academic resume. I started investigating what I could do for a bachelor’s degree,” Meadows said.

Getting his bachelor’s degree

Kyle Meadows talking with his coworkers at CoxHealth.
Kyle Meadows, left, is on track to complete his bachelor’s degree in spring 2021 and his master’s degree in 2022.

His investigation led him to Missouri State University’s health services degree in the department of public health and sports medicine.

The degree was attractive because it offered a clinical services option for students who were already allied health professionals with an allied health associate degree.

The health services program provides a foundation of knowledge in health care, health care systems, global health, legal issues, grant writing, leadership, and much more.

“The MSU program is focused on leadership and quality education. This degree will give me a lot of opportunities.”

“It allows you to use the allied health degree as your first two years as long as you have the Missouri general education requirements. It made me a junior when I started the program,” he said.

Meadows was also attracted to MSU for its cost and reputation. So he enrolled one last time at OTC to complete his Core 42, then transferred to Missouri State.

He loves the program.

“The curriculum is focused on what I do every day. That speaks a lot for that program. I tout it to everyone. I tell everyone in my field to take that path. It’s a fantastic program and I really enjoy the curriculum. I keep many of the PowerPoints from classes,” he said.

The online courses have made it feasible for Meadows to go to school and continue to work fulltime.

His next move

Meadows is the system educator for the paramedicine department at CoxHealth.

“We train about 5,000 first responders across Southwest Missouri: Police, Fire, SWAT, EMT’s, Paramedics, Nurses, and community members. We are also one of only four training centers in America for the U.S. Special Operations Combat Medic program based out of Fort Bragg, N.C. We have around 300 personnel and operate our own dispatch center,” he said.

The education aspect of his job excites Meadows and he will continue to further his career with that once he completes his bachelor’s degree in spring 2021.

While it took him a while to figure out exactly what he wanted to do, he chipped away at his goal — sometimes one course at a time.

“My first class was in 2004 and my last class in a master’s degree will be 2022,” he chuckled. “If I could go back and give myself some advice, I would not have finished the fire science degree. I would have gone straight to MSU. The MSU program is focused on leadership and quality education. This degree will give me a lot of opportunities.”