La Follette faculty, staff, and students traveled to Epic Systems on May 5 for a visit that included a walking tour of the whimsical Epic campus and wide-ranging presentations from Epic leadership on topics such as data and research, health equity, and how electronic health records work to improve health and wellness.
Epic Systems is one of the largest healthcare software companies in the world, with a third of U.S. hospitals using Epic software to manage their electronic health records. Founded in 1979, it has grown to become one of the largest and most well-known employers in the Madison area with nearly 12,000 employees and plans to hire another 1,700 in the next year.
The visit was an exciting opportunity for the La Follette School, where several members of the faculty conduct healthcare research, many graduate students aspire to careers in health policy, and hundreds of students are currently enrolled in La Follette’s undergraduate health policy certificate courses.
“Our visit to the Epic campus actually exceeded our high expectations, and I hope this visit marks the beginning of a longer conversation about opportunities to collaborate,” said La Follette Director Susan Webb Yackee. “This is a natural partnership given our mutual interest in data, evidence, and thoughtful health policy.”
La Follette students also enjoyed seeing an example of the dynamic types of career opportunities that they could pursue upon graduation. Epic Systems is consistently a top employer of UW-Madison graduates, currently employing over 1,200 UW grads. The La Follette School is grateful to Epic Systems for hosting them for this informative and fun-filled visit.