Alexa Kilfoy Named Recipient of Prestigious Health Information Management Scholarship

Health information management student Alexa Kilfoy has been named the recipient of the Elmo and Jean Poole Health Information Management Scholarship for the 2016-2017 school year. The $5,000 scholarship was awarded to Kilfoy in recognition of her strong academic performance, her leadership and her service to the field of Health Information Management.

"I was very excited and humbled when I received the news that I had won the Elmo and Jean Poole HIM Scholarship," Kilfoy said. "I believe I have truly found a passion for health information management and my future career. This generous scholarship will help me to continue my passion and engage with students, faculty and other HIM professionals in my field."

From the time that she was a young child, Kilfoy knew she wanted to help people and work in the medical field, she said. It wasn't until later in life, however, that she realized that her calling was in health information management.

Kilfoy began her journey in a nursing program at another university. As she gained opportunities to work in various hospital and clinical settings, she began using electronic health record systems and she became fascinated with the behind-the-scenes aspects of health care.

"I realized that I still wanted to take care of people in health care, but the way in which I wanted to care for people had changed," said Kilfoy. "It was then, after careful thought and consideration, that I transferred to Saint Louis University and began my new journey as a health information management major. I am so happy and grateful to be a part of the HIM program at Saint Louis University."

Jean Raffley Poole was a graduate of SLU in 1955 with a degree in medical record science. She and her husband, Elmo Poole, generously remembered SLU's program in health information management in their wills. An endowment fund in their honor was created in 2003.