TAMPA 鈥� At age 18, Elodie Dorso lost her mom to breast cancer. A year later, her dad
died of non-Hodgkin's disease.
While she didn鈥檛 know it at the time, going through the health care journey with her
parents 鈥� and the life-changing grief that followed 鈥� would define her.
鈥淚 think that shaped me in wanting to go into healthcare administration,鈥� she said.
鈥淏ut as I began my collegiate journey, I was just trying to get through the loss of
my parents.鈥�
Dorso is the CEO and president of Evara Health, one of the nation鈥檚 largest community
health centers. The network of health centers serves nearly 70,000 patients, most
of whom are low-income and underserved residents in Pinellas County.
She was the featured guest at Thursday鈥檚 Conversation with a CEO event hosted by the
USF Muma College of Business and held at USF鈥檚 Center for Advanced Medical Learning
and Simulation in downtown Tampa.
Nearly 60 alumni, students, faculty and business professionals attended the hour-long
discussion led by David Blackwell, the Lynn Pippenger dean at the business college.
Dorso, who graduated from USF with a political science degree, said each parent鈥檚
journey was a little different. Her mom was insured and had access to care, tests,
and research. While her dad was uninsured and had gaps in health care and other barriers
that oftentimes delayed his care.
鈥淚 wanted to make sure that I had an impact on others who were going through the health
care experience,鈥� she said, adding that being a doctor was not in her DNA, so she
chose health care administration instead.
Dorso shared many lessons learned and advice about leadership during the 60-minute
conversation.
She said her mom was the first female vice president at an investment banking firm
and one of her biggest role models.
鈥淚 didn鈥檛 recognize it then because I was young, but she really set the foundation
for how to lead with grace and strength, how to make sure that your voice was heard,
and how to reach for big goals,鈥� Dorso said.
Dorso said she鈥檚 learned a lot just by observing great leaders and offered some sage
advice to students.
鈥淭ake the risk, take the opportunity,鈥� she said. 鈥淚f something is presented to you,
don鈥檛 shy away from it. You may not understand it, or how it fits in your journey
or in your role. But you鈥檙e going to learn a lot. And that鈥檚 really important. Experience
teaches you a lot.鈥�
She also told students to not get hung up on job titles.
鈥淲hat鈥檚 on your business card doesn鈥檛 define you or how you are as a leader. Some
of the best leaders that I鈥檝e worked with didn鈥檛 have a title. They stood up when
times were tough. They supported others in their journey. They define trust and credibility,鈥�
she said.
Dorso said she was fortunate to join Evara Health when the organization was very small. In the over 20 years that she has been with the company, she has been responsible for leading the organization through immense growth.
鈥淭hat provided me the opportunity to get my hands into every single piece of the operations,鈥�
she said. 鈥淓ven today, we have leaders that go out and travel the path of a patient.
What does it feel like? What does it look like in our facility? Would you lay on an
exam table? Are the ceilings clean or dirty? This all matters.鈥�
One of Dorso鈥檚 best advice was telling students to remember their why.
鈥淪taying grounded in your mission and staying true to yourself is really, really important
for young leaders,鈥� she said.