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Join host Cynthia Kirkpatrick in a deeply inspiring conversation with Sylvia Owens, the Director IT Revenue Cycle Systems at BJC Healthcare. With over 27 years of experience in healthcare, 18 of them in IT, Sylvia shares her incredible journey from growing up in East St. Louis to playing professional basketball in Europe and eventually transitioning into a leadership role in healthcare technology. Sylvia’s story is one of resilience, reinvention, and the power of hard work.
In this episode, we dive into:
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About Our Guest: Sylvia Owens is the Director of IT at BJC Healthcare, where she focuses on software change management and business process design. She has an 18-year background in healthcare IT, implementing Epic electronic health records across large healthcare systems. Before transitioning into healthcare, Sylvia played professional basketball in Europe and has continuously demonstrated courage and resilience throughout her life.
🏀 Sylvia’s Background and Career (00:00 – 09:41)
🎓 Education and Early Career (09:41 – 19:01)
💻 IT Career in Healthcare (19:01 – 27:32)
👥 Leadership Philosophy (27:32 – 35:14)
🌟 Overcoming Challenges (35:15 – 47:06)
🚀 Advice for Success (47:07 – 56:47)
🌈 Personal Growth and Inspiration (56:47 – 01:06:16)
🤝 Mentorship and Giving Back (01:06:16 – 01:17:00)
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This podcast and all She Lift Project content represents the opinions of Cynthia Kirkpatrick and her guests. The content here is for informational purposes only, and should not be taken as professional advice – financial, legal, medical, or otherwise.
Views and opinions expressed in the podcast and across all She Lift Project media channels are our own and do not represent that of our places of work. While we make every effort to ensure that the information we are sharing is accurate, we welcome any comments, suggestions, or correction of errors.
“I got thrown out of the OR the very first day after 10 minutes. The surgeon walked into the room and he opened up all the doors and he screamed as loud as he possibly could, ‘I will not have Dr. Feinberg’s wife in my room!!’ See, I wasn’t Dr. Feinberg. I was Dr. Feinberg’s wife.”
We have level 1 to 10. 10 is being at the top level. You have your faces, you have your attack, your energy, all the things to be at the highest level for themselves. That’s level 10…If they want to be at a level 10, they’ll work at a level 10. That means in classwork, not just on stage.
“Young Shannon became an overachiever because she was a people pleaser. She needed to please others. And so that really developed in my adulthood as well. “
“They say, I’m still working 60, 80 hours a week. I got into this so I could pick my kids up from school and so I could attend their soccer games that are after school and I haven’t been able to attend one. I got into this so that we could go on great family vacations. And I haven’t been on a vacation now in five years. More people are coming to us for those reasons…it’s the lifestyle sacrifices that are causing people more pain than taking home a paycheck that isn’t what they thought it would be.”
It’s not about me selling and, you know, me making money. It’s about you being satisfied and happy with what you want and what you need. And I’ve always had that kind of philosophy, and my dad had that, too. And people recognize you’re not in it for yourself, you’re in it for them. And you’re sincere, and it really goes a long way.
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