skip to main content
Sarah Kramer
Sarah Kramer
00:50

Sarah Kramer

Yuma Regional Medical Center

Yuma, AZ USA

"There is no such thing as perfect health and as we continue to solve the basic problems within medicine, there will always be new frontiers. With technology, we can’t even envision where [medicine] will be in the future."

Career Roadmap

Sarah's work combines: Medicine, Technology, and Problem Solving

See more careers and stories that connect to your interests.

Take Roadmap Quiz

Day In The Life

Chief Medical Information Officer

I optimize electronic health records to improve the clinician and patient experience.

01:43

Day In The Life Of A Chief Medical Information Officer

My Day to Day

One of my areas of focus is how our electronic health records work. Mostly I have meetings and lots of conversations with leaders and clinicians about to their experience with the software, related regulations and data. I also do a lot of mentoring of the next generation of professionals so they use this technology effectively.

Skills & Education

Advice for getting started

Find good mentors who believe in you and can give you practical advice and a supportive but objective perspective. I was lucky that my husband was able to stay home with the kids early on and I did have an opportunity at one point to stay home with them myself. However, finding a great partner isn't an option for everyone. Sometimes choosing your career over family and vice versa isn't being selfish, it's about doing what is right for you and for your family.

Here's the path I took:

  • High School

  • Bachelor's Degree

    Pre-Medicine/Pre-Medical Studies

    Lehigh University

  • Doctorate

    Medicine

    Drexel University

Life & Career Milestones

I've taken a lot of twists and turns

  • 1.

    Born and raised on the East Coast of the U.S.

  • 2.

    Her father was a physicist and almost all of her siblings have pursued a career in some form of science or technology.

  • 3.

    Originally planned to be an engineering major, but switched to pre-med—attended Lehigh University for undergrad and graduated from Drexel University with her medical doctorate.

  • 4.

    After completing her medical residency in Philadelphia, she joined the U.S. Army where she served five years on active duty and later spent time in the reserves.

  • 5.

    Her military service included serving as the Major and Chief of the Soldier Care Service at Madigan Army Medical Center near Tacoma, WA.

  • 6.

    She later went on to work as a Clinic Chief and an Attending Physician in the Department of Family Medicine at UW Medicine for over 30 years.

  • 7.

    After years of helping run clinics, she began exploring ways to incorporate technology into medicine in order to make it more efficient and easier for people to have access to healthcare.

  • 8.

    She decided to make the transition from working as a physician to focusing more on medical informatics—she now works as the Chief Medical Information Officer at Yuma Regional Medical Center.

Defining Moments

How I responded to discouragement

  • THE NOISE

    Messages from Myself:

    I can't balance the needs of my family with the needs of my career.

  • How I responded:

    Find good mentors who believe in you and can give you practical advice and a supportive but objective perspective. I was lucky that my husband was able to stay home with the kids early on and I did have an opportunity at one point to stay home with them myself. However, finding a great partner isn't an option for everyone. Sometimes choosing your career over family and vice versa isn't being selfish, it's about doing what is right for you and for your family.