Meet Petra Lindquist, BSN, senior sales director

#ValidicProud

In our next employee spotlight, I talked with Petra Lindquist, senior sales director. Petra graduated from Sonoma State University with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology. She also earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Nursing. She lives in the Bay Area with her family.

Adrienne Rupp: Why did you decide to join Validic?

Petra Lindquist: I have been in healthcare since I was in my early 20s and have seen it change dramatically in the last 10 years. As a nurse with two aging parents’ who live in a rural area with poor access to healthcare, I really wanted to be with a company that could make a difference. Validic is that company.

I believe the only way to bridge the major gaps we have in healthcare today is through technology. The clinician shortage is not going away anytime soon, and we have to use smart technology to improve not only patients’ lives but also clinicians’ lives.

AR: Tell me about your role as senior sales director.

PL: Day-to-day, innovative start-up health tech companies look to connect clinical and consumer devices, and wearables. That’s what we’re really good at. My job is to make payers, providers, and healthcare technology companies aware of our technology and the ways it can touch millions of lives.

With regard to our personalized and remote patient care solution, I meet with CMOs, CIOs, directors of innovation, and directors of virtual health & telehealth, to talk through the landscape of a personalized care and remote patient monitoring strategy. We’ll discuss how they can implement a remote care strategy to reduce readmissions, and keep patients out of the hospital and at home living well and managing chronic conditions effectively.

AR: What skills, education, and training do you need for the role?

PL: I have a unique skill set. Starting out as an ICU/ED nurse at Stanford, I experienced my first nursing strike, and I ended up working for a staffing agency.  I was placed in every department in the hospital and worked at more than 15 different hospitals. That really gave me a glimpse into how hospitals and their departments are run.

I then shifted to sales and worked in the breast cancer space for more than 10 years, which was incredibly rewarding. But I really wanted to make a bigger impact on patients and believed technology was the key.

In my late forties, I went to work at Gartner — a technology research and consulting firm — for more IT knowledge. It wasn’t easy; I had two young boys and left home for five weeks of training. With the technical knowledge I learned from Gartner, I made the switch to healthcare IT. I chose Validic because we have the right technology to touch millions of lives.

AR: What do you enjoy most about working at Validic?

PL: I love working at Validic. I work with an experienced team of professionals. Everyone is really down-to-earth and passionate about making people’s lives better. I really enjoy talking to my clients, learning about what challenges they’re facing today, and being able to offer a solution and even a new way of thinking about healthcare.

Today, many of our providers are still operating under a fee-for-service model, creating ROI that allows them to add new technology. It’s really about saving money, time, and resources, allowing staff to work at the top of their license.

COVID has really changed things, shifting mindsets across the healthcare industry. We must change that mindset and look at things differently, not just retention of staff, but keeping our healthy patients healthy and reducing the rising risk population. These are huge opportunities for cost savings in the end.

AR: What’s one thing on your bucket list?

PL: I’d love to start my own company that directly improves people’s lives.

I am in my 50s. I look at healthcare, and I think about who will be taking care of me. One of my goals is to create communities where like-minded people own small houses and enjoy community gardens. 3-4 dedicated care workers would take care of community members, instead of today’s rotating personnel care model.

AR: When you’re not at work, how do you spend your free time?

PL: I have two teenage boys and they keep me busy! I love the outdoors and spend every weekend with my friends and family snowboarding and skiing in the winter. In the summer, I’m on my bike. I am a head coach for the local high school mountain biking team as well as a founder of a women’s bike club called Moxi Chix. I’ve been in the cycling community for a long time.

AR: Finally, do you have any advice for someone just starting out?

PL: Be tenacious, have grit, don’t give up. You’re never too old to learn or to pivot. I went from a nurse at the bedside to working for a health technology company with my eye on owning my own business someday. Don’t be afraid of change; it’s necessary for growth, even when it hurts and it’s scary.