Interview with Darvi Rahaman: Executive with Peak Vista Community

Colorado Springs Business Journal, Oct 24, 2008

Darvi Rahaman left a successful private practice at the University of California at Los Angeles for a career at Peak Vista Health Centers.

The reason? He wanted to give children in the Pikes Peak region something he didn't have growing up: access to quality, affordable health care.

"I would have been a patient somewhere like this -- I was one of these kids growing up," he said. "I didn't like the setting in California, and I decided this was something I wanted to do."

He's been working at Peak Vista for nine years.

Rahaman recently took time to tell CSBJ about himself and his organization.

Organization: Peak Vista Community Health Centers

Position: Assistant vice president of medical affairs; director of the Pediatric Health Center

Hometown: Born on the Caribbean island of Trinidad and Tobago and spent the first 14 years of my life there; moved to Brooklyn, N.Y., and spent one year there, before moving to my hometown of Las Vegas.

How long have you lived in Colorado Springs: Nine years

Education: Bachelor's degree in biomedical engineering and minor in religion from the University of Southern California. Medical degree from the University of California at Los Angeles, and general pediatric residency and chief residency at Mattel Children's Hospital at UCLA.

A few words about your company: We are a private nonprofit founded 37 years ago, with a mission to provide excellent health care to those facing access barriers. Serving the underserved population of Colorado Springs is at the core of our 430 employees. We serve more than 50,000 patients and are on track to surpass 200,000 patient visits this year.

Recent accomplishments: I just finished my first year as assistant vice president for medical affairs.

Biggest career break: Getting hired here at Peak Vista. I have found the place where I want to spend the rest of my career.

The toughest part of your job: Realizing daily how the cycle of poverty is being fueled by the lack of emphasis placed on the importance of education and personal responsibility.

Someone you admire: My parents, who with less than a middle school experience were able to demonstrate to their four sons -- who all have graduate degrees in business and medicine -- the importance of education and using this as a strong foundation for future generations of our family

About your family: My wife, Jodene, is a wonderful mother to our two sons, Clay, 9, and Wade, 7, and also finds time to run a travel agency that focuses on family vacations and honeymoons. My oldest brother is a financial planning and cost analysis manager at Parker Hannifen in Michigan and my youngest brother is a senior financial analyst at CVS/CareMark in Arizona. My immediately younger brother is a family physician/director at a Community Health Center in Las Vegas.

Something else you'd like to accomplish: To get down a run, any run, on a snowboard without visiting the emergency room.

How your business will change during the next decade: As the El Paso County population grows, so will our patient population, thus we need to continue working on anticipatory business models for such growth. We need to always keep in mind that state and federal legislative changes to Medicare and Medicaid reimbursement affect us markedly.

What book are you currently reading? "The Chase" by Clive Cussler -- my favorite author.

What is the one thing you would change about Colorado Springs? We need an east-west freeway and a more robust, passenger-friendly public transportation system. Otherwise, this is the greatest place in the country to live.