MIDTERM PAPER

Midterm Paper: Internship Report

Midterm Paper: Internship Report

Interning at the Union Hospital has been a good learning opportunity for me. For one, I got the chance to feel the practical life. I had a chance to trace and solidify my theoretical understanding, and feel it in real life work setting. In this report, I objectively present insights of my learning and working experience at the hospital. Unlike commercial businesses like retail and trading, hospitals are not required to pay tax given their social support (Choi 2003). Since the hospital service is a noble cause, I could see a high level of staff's integrity and commitment. The Union Hospital caters the patients' needs of a health provider for as many as 35 medical specialties (The Union Hospital Homepage 2012).

Purchasing Department

In the first two days of my internship, I was posted in the purchasing department. I closely monitored the purchasing activities of the hospital. Although I knew that purchasing department of any business played a crucial role in managing inventory, the purchasing activity at the hospital really astonished me. The purchasing department of the Union Hospital is responsible for buying the hospital supplies like medical products (including drugs, drips and disposable gloves), bed sheets, and patient & staff supplies like food, tissue, towel, etc). Since the hospital purchases these items in bulk, the purchase manager has to make periodic contracts with the suppliers in addition to managing the purchase bills, order quantities, and product prices (Choi 2003). In addition to these regular purchases, the department also deals with long-life items like wheel chair and medical equipment. However, these purchases are made quarterly or after 6 months, since the life duration of these items is longer. Most of the regular items are taken from the large warehouse where abundant quantities of goods are ...