Providence, the large Catholic health system based in Seattle, has promoted Sara Vaezy to be the system’s chief digital officer.
Vaezy succeeds Aaron Martin, who recently left to return to Amazon. She will report to Providence CEO Rod Hochman.
Previously, Vaezy was Providence’s chief of digital and strategy. She led the build of Providence’s Digital Innovation Group, which is an innovation center within the health system that incubates technologies in partnership with developing companies. Under her leadership, Providence has provided these companies with digital strategy, partnerships, commercialization, technology evaluation and thought leadership. It also has formed created relationships with more than 150 health system digital and innovation teams, venture capital organizations and digital health organizations.
In her new role, Vaezy will oversee digital strategy, product innovation and incubation, marketing, digital experience and commercialization across the Providence enterprise. The health system has 52 hospitals and 1,085 clinics up and down the West Coast.
Vaezy is also a National Committee for Quality Assurance Board Director, an inaugural member of the Frist Cressey Ventures Collective and a Health Evolution Forum Fellow.
The health system also announced Shweta Ponnappa was promoted chief marketing and digital experience officer, responsible for marketing and digital experiences system-wide for Providence.
Jeff Stolte was named the managing director of Providence Ventures, the health system’s $300 million health tech fund, which Martin also oversaw.
In 2021, Providence Innovation Group spun out DexCare, a platform-as-a-service, digital care operating system that manages health system capacity and demand across all lines of care.
Martin left after eight years at Providence to help Amazon manuever its way into the healthcare space.
