Elizabeth Chidothe is a healthcare leader based in Minneapolis, MN.

Elizabeth grew up in a small town in South Dakota where she did not have much access to the wider world but remained curious about the communities around her. While she did not travel outside of the state often, she had exposure to people from around the world through participation in local tribal events, a program called Up With People, and foreign exchange students.  Within the walls of her home, she began to explore cultures other than her own through conversation, food, and dance.  She pursued nursing as she knew that her love of science, creativity, and people would merge into a fulfilling career.  She continued to explore other cultures throughout her adulthood by immersing herself in communities in Costa Rica, Denmark, Europe, Mexico, and Zimbabwe.  Throughout these travels, she studied how structural systems impact access to health, wellness, and happiness, while simultaneously becoming an expert on the human body through her educational experiences.

As a cardiac intensive care nurse, she saw firsthand that the current overall US healthcare system which spends approximately 20% of the GDP on healthcare is not sustainable in the future. It continues to pour money into the management of preventable chronic disease and end-of-life care, while not creating effective and sustainable systems that are known to reduce or prevent chronic diseases at scale.  She pursued her master of science in nursing at the University of Pennsylvania as she knew it would prepare her for leading the change she wanted to see.  As she entered into her role as a nurse practitioner in two different Minneapolis-based primary care settings (a federally qualified health center and a convenient care clinic) it reinforced her belief that a more holistic and preventative approach to chronic disease prevention and management was needed. Charged by this belief, she became a founding employee of the nurse-led startups Retrace Health and Nice Healthcare whose missions were to provide affordable and convenient care to patients via video and in their homes. As a leader in both companies, she rigorously worked on establishing policies, programs, and frameworks for the company and for the people she managed that would set the stage for quality and holistic care for the populations they served. 

As she looks to the next chapter in her career she is prepared to impact the advancement of healthcare towards longevity and vitality by empathically leading the development of people and systems to create environments of health.

healthcare | leadership | innovation | design | organization strategy + culture