Stephany Silva, MBA, LSSGB

I attribute my success to my 12 years in healthcare and my ability to maintain a successful career even while going through incredibly challenging personal circumstances. When my now-husband was diagnosed with stage 4 mediastinal B-cell lymphoma just 3 weeks after we moved to Savannah, I had to put on my advocate hat and do a lot of research to better support him through his 3-year battle. I was working through all of it, and we were not married at the time, so I did not have rights to FMLA, but I had very supportive leaders that helped me navigate, and a very strong team allowed me to do it as well. Going through something so big in your life can either make or break you, and it definitely made us so much stronger. Living through that experience has helped me prioritize and take a lot of pride in the work that I do, because I've lived it in some sort of fashion. I understand how challenging it can be to navigate the healthcare system, even when you work in it, and that drives me to ensure that the seniors I serve, who are a very vulnerable population, get the advocacy and care they deserve. It's about constant learning and adaptation in the healthcare field, and my teams teach me a lot too, because healthcare is constantly changing.

You can have a successful career in a field that you love and be able to make a difference in the lives of others as her most notable professional achievement, which was opening four new markets in the past year, resulting in over 3,000 patients across those locations.

I'm a big proponent of women building other women up. I think the more we can be supportive of one another as women and celebrate each other is a huge need consistently. I always tell that to my leaders and folks that I've been able to grow professionally to continue to always keep that in mind, because in the workplace, I think women tend to be harder on each other. I love platforms that celebrate women in different professions and different backgrounds, because I think it's so important for us to support and uplift one another rather than tear each other down.

The biggest challenge in healthcare right now is navigating all the nuances in the system. It really takes a full team to ensure that we're providing the right care, because there are a lot of nuances that we have to navigate, and just because there are nuances doesn't mean that we can be complacent and okay with it - we just have to learn how to navigate it. It's a constant learning and educating process. Healthcare is always changing, so sometimes there is a new nuance that we have to start thinking through and troubleshoot so that we can get the right things for our patients. Even working in healthcare, I know how challenging it can be for everyone to navigate, even if you work in it. It does feel like jumping through hoops sometimes. You have to fight to get insurance to approve anything, and doctors are having to call insurance companies now, which you never would have seen before. But we can't be complacent - we have to learn how to navigate these challenges to ensure our seniors, who are a very vulnerable population, get the care they deserve.

The most important values to me are advocacy, intentionality, and taking pride in the work that I do. We work with seniors who are a very vulnerable population who sometimes don't have a great support system, so we have to take that pride on ourselves as our team to be able to advocate for them and ensure that they're getting adequate care. Going through my husband's cancer battle taught me how important it is to be intentional in the moment and to prioritize what really matters. We want to be intentional in our experiences together, whether that's traveling, trying new foods and restaurants, or doing activities that create memories. I also value constant learning and growth - healthcare is constantly changing, and our teams teach me a lot too. I believe strongly in women building other women up and being supportive of one another, which is something I always tell my leaders and the folks I've been able to grow professionally. And of course, staying active and healthy is important to us - we're doing Orange Theory classes, running 5Ks and half marathons for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, because we've lived through the importance of health and want to give back to the organization that supported us.