Nikki Caputo

April 25, 2021
Nikki Caputo
Nikki Caputo

Digital expert traces roots to hospital cafeteria

When Nikki Caputo hears about a child who didn’t vomit in anticipation of his hospital visit or a woman who endured a painful procedure with nary a whimper, she’s done her job.

Caputo, UCHealth’s senior director of experience, innovation and best practice, uses digital technology to improve the lives of patients she likely will never meet. The virtual reality program she leads with her team and dedicated clinical champions, lets patients escape to a sandy beach, traverse the Grand Canyon on the Colorado River or take a hot air balloon ride. VR is used throughout UCHealth to help patients manage anxiety or pain.

“A lot of people think technology disconnects us from each other,” Caputo said recently. “My job is to show how technology adds value to the human connection.”

With the passion of an evangelist and data-driven focus of a marketer, Caputo convinced others VR was neither fad nor fluke. After extensive research, and meeting with a VR-focused company whose values aligned with UCHealth’s, Caputo advocated for a system-wide pilot. Data from the University of Colorado Hospital, UCHealth Memorial Hospital and the infusion center at the Harmony campus in Fort Collins backed up the idea. But it was a patient comment that stuck.

“We had a woman say we made her forget she had cancer,” Caputo said. “That told me I’d done my job today and motivated me to ask what I can do tomorrow to make that patient’s experience better.”

Caputo is well-versed in the latest technology. She’s led a team that built an app to help patients navigate UCHealth hospitals and to build Livi, UCHealth’s foray into the world of conversational artificial intelligence. But it was her first hospital job that convinced her she wanted a career in health care.

In high school, Caputo pumped gas and checked the engine oil level in customer’s cars at a gas station in her small Minnesota hometown. After graduation, she worked in the PVH cafeteria. She staffed the cash register, stacked cups and got to run the pizza oven and grill. There, she saw commitment to patients and the health care mission.

“The people I worked with were awesome,” Caputo said. “They showed me what it meant to take pride in your work. They gave me an education I’ll never forget.”

Caputo went back to Minnesota, managing a sandwich shop and selling Star Wars toys online while earning a degree in photojournalism and marketing. But she never forgot Colorado. After graduation, she landed a job in Denver at a marketing research firm where she processed and analyzed data. That job propelled her to enroll at Colorado State University where she earned a master’s in health communication and focused on how entertainment media narrative can affect behavior and mental illness stigma.  A chance meeting with the Poudre Valley Hospital foundation director led to an interview and a position coordinating events. From there, she worked in marketing communications positions for the foundation, Poudre Valley Health System and UCHealth. The self-described technology and data geek found her niche creating digital strategies to help people.

“We all go through a variety of things,” Caputo said. “It’s important to build motivation every day and to understand what gets you out of bed in the morning. I encourage everyone to be honest with themselves, find your voice and to be laser-focused. Of course, no matter how driven you are toward your goals, head down to make a difference, life is too short to not remember the simplest life win: to be kind.”

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