Profile of Ashley D. Lykins, MHS class of 2006:
What have you been doing since graduating with a MHS major?
I started as a Legislative Reporter for the Tennessee Legislation Service, which is a bill tracking service offered to lobbyists, governmental liaisons, and the public at large. Tennessee has more bills introduced in its General Assembly than almost any other state, so in any given two-year session, there are an average of 8,500 bills! My primary focus was health and child related issues, so I was able to see the creation of a public insurance plan, CoverTennessee (which includes Tennessee’s SCHIP program, CoverKids.) After this experience, I wanted a more hands on approach to state government, so I joined the Tennessee Department of Health as a Managed Care Consultant. This position exposed me to a wide variety of issues relating to state insurance models, but more importantly the structure of state government. I became actively involved in researching substance abuse treatment models for youth and working on the Tennessee Coordination of Treatment Project, a federally funded program run out of the Governor’s Office of Children Care Coordination. I ended up transitioning to the Department of Mental Health & Developmental Disabilities where I continued to work on adolescent substance abuse issues as well as writing federally funded grants. Now I am completing a Masters in Business Administration with a focus on Health Care and International Relations.
What has been the most satisfying part of your work?
Feeling that I can make a difference for the people and communities who need better access to health resources and information.
What aspects of the MHS program did you find most valuable?
The MHS program is truly an interdisciplinary approach to learning about the world as it relates not only to medicine, health or sociology (as the name alludes), but also to interacting disciplines such as economics, history, political science, and international studies just to name a few. I feel like I was able to receive a broad foundation of knowledge about different aspects that influence my main field of interest, public health. I think that an MHS offers more for students than other degree programs because it gives us a broader perspective on the way disciplines interconnect. It trains you to think in terms of how the world actually works.
What advice would you give to current MHS students who might be interested in [your field]?
There are so many opportunities and various career paths for people who have a desire and intellect to improve the world around them. My advice would be not to limit yourself to thinking that you can only do a certain thing by being one type of professional or having just one type of career. Try to identify what you want to achieve both personally and professionally, then seek out others who have done similar things. Look at these individuals as mentors and challenge yourself to take what they have accomplished one step further. This is how change happens.
Ashley D. Lykins
Health Care MBA Candidate 2009
Owen Graduate School of Management
Vanderbilt University
