The Quiet Bravery of Building: My Journey in Healthcare IT

Since my early days, I've known that healthcare was my place—not just a field or a career path, but my place. For a natural nurturer like me, where else would I fit but in an industry that revolves around life, health, and healing? But stepping into healthcare IT, I didn’t anticipate how profoundly it would shape my worldview or how I’d grow alongside it, watching it evolve as intimately as if it were family.

Every job, every title, and every role I’ve embraced in this industry has broadened my understanding of the human condition, revealing a depth that few have the privilege to see. I’ve navigated healthcare policy and delivery, innovation, and disruption—yes, even a bit of anarchy. If there’s a part of healthcare IT, I’ve been there, whether building clinics from scratch, mentoring startups, or sitting in the background of others’ big moments. In fact, I’ve worn so many hats that summing up “what I do” often feels like I’m describing a hundred careers at once. But here’s the irony: even though I’ve done much and achieved much, there’s a part of me that still feels small. Accomplished, yes—but not sure that I’ve genuinely been brave.

Last week, a good friend, Jack Murtha , Co-Founder of MapChange, shared a story that stirred something inside me. It was a tale about the underdog’s struggle, a poignant reminder of resilience and ambition. And it made me reflect on my own place in this industry. I’ve been the backbone to others’ breakthroughs, a guiding hand for those finding their footing, and a builder in the truest sense of the word. But always in a way that allowed me to stay in the shadows—supporting others, comfortable but never quite courageous.

I realize now that while I’ve created and grown, it’s always been with a layer of reservation, a degree of safety. I built brands and partnered with people, preferring to let them shine in the foreground while I handled the logistics and strategy. And I believed this was enough—until I didn’t. Because while healthcare technology demands so much of us, one thing it demands most is courage.

Supporting others is second nature to me, maybe because I’m an introvert on a whole other level. I enjoy the behind-the-scenes work, the problem-solving and structuring that lets me help quietly and efficiently. It’s where I’m comfortable. But stepping into the fray and putting myself at the heart of healthcare IT innovation requires a kind of bravery that has long eluded me.

Yet healthcare IT is not a space for the fainthearted. We are not just pushing pixels on a screen but building solutions that impact lives and livelihoods. Throughout my journey, I’ve seen how our work ripples out to touch people in ways we can’t always predict. The risks are real, and so are the stakes. It’s easy to hide behind strategy and frameworks, but the real change-makers in this field don’t stay hidden. They step up. They push boundaries, even when the outcome is uncertain.

Reflecting on my journey, I recognize that while I’ve accomplished much, I’ve also held myself back. It’s a strange place to be—to know you are remarkable but still feel somehow small. I wonder if others feel the same, if other builders and dreamers in healthcare IT struggle to embrace the bravery our work demands. Because the truth is, to be part of healthcare IT is to be part of something that fundamentally changes lives. Our choices impact real people, in ways big and small. And to do that work well, to indeed lead, we have to be brave.

Maybe bravery in this space means learning to step out of the background and into the forefront of change. It may mean pushing ourselves to be the ones who take the risks and who stand as examples of what healthcare IT can achieve. I feel a calling with renewed clarity—a realization that nurturing and supporting is good, but leading with courage is what this industry, what our people, need now more than ever.

As long as we reside at the intersection of technology and human care, our purpose is simple yet profound: to improve lives through innovation, compassion, and, yes, bravery. And so, I step forward—no longer content to be remarkable in the shadows but striving to be boldly remarkable in the light.