Apr 27

Apr 27 UNITED HEALTH CENTERS OF THE SAN JOAQUIN VALLEY

Professional Profiles, Women in Business, Women of Influence

Colleen Curtis

President & Chief Executive Officer

A mountain isn’t climbed by one leap or within a day, but by one step at a time for as long as it takes.

As the President and CEO of United Health Centers of the San Joaquin Valley, I currently lead a core staff of over 1,000 employees in the operations of 25 health centers in Fresno, Kings, and Tulare Counties. As an essential workforce in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic and the ever-increasing medical needs in the Valley, we remained committed to caring for our 165,000 patients in visits that topped 900,000 in 2021. Today we expect those numbers to increase as four new UHC health centers will open this year with comprehensive primary medical care, as well as numerous specialty care services and ancillary services including pharmacy, imaging, lab, and free patient transportation. In this electronic driven world of email and social media, it is the human interaction that will be the key component of any new technology that drives success or failure. The leaders that devote their attention to this for their customers will be successful in whatever they lead.

What Motivates Me
Each day is an opportunity to improve upon yesterday’s achievements to benefit our staff and patients. Our goal is to provide every patient with an experience where their need is met with expertise, kindness, and respect. Likewise, our goal for our staff is to provide a work environment that cares about them both professionally and personally. We accomplish this with effective leadership and training to enrich their confidence and then pass on their positivity to our patients. Improving on these foundations every day is what motivates me.

What I Am Thankful For
I am truly thankful for the extraordinary group of executive leaders and providers that we have assembled to carry out our mission serving communities, large or small, with exceptional service in beautiful healing environments that our staff and patients deserve. These individuals work tirelessly to provide quality service and their vision for our future is exciting. I am so grateful to work alongside these outstanding individuals and have this opportunity to serve this wonderful organization as its leader.

How I Measure Success
I believe you can measure success by the people you have around you. People that believe in you and want to help you move toward goals and improvements together. I truly feel successful because of the many individuals in my life both professionally and personally. Money can’t buy love, respect, loyalty and good friends. I’ve been blessed.