Alumni Engagement

Colleen’s advice to aspiring physicians or those seeking to have a positive impact on yourself and your community’s health: go rural! That is where people are most in need and the most appreciative of medical expertise and services.

Colleen was born on the island of Kauai, Hawaii but spent much of her childhood in California. She attended the University of Southern California (USC) and Rosalind Franklin University/Chicago Medical School before returning to the women’s hospital at USC /Los Angeles County for residency. As one of the senior OB/GYN residents in LA County in the early 80’s, it was an exciting time – her hospital delivered the most babies in the U.S.

After her residency, Colleen and her husband, a pediatrician, moved to Maui. She soon opened her own solo private practice, where she stayed for over 35 years, welcoming generations of babies, watching children grow into parents/patients, and caring for multi-generational families in her small community.

“You get to know the community well,” she said. “We would see patients when we went to the stores or out to dinner. It’s not something physicians can appreciate in a big city. If you want to have the relationships and gratitude and community feeling with patients, then rural communities are the place to be.”

After Colleen became Chief of Staff at Maui Memorial Medical Center in 2010, she began focusing on education – first by joining the American Association for Physician Leadership (then known as ACPE), and applying course credits towards then by earning a master’s degree in medical management.  Next, she began reading about the emerging area of population health and applied to the Jefferson College of Population Health (JCPH) Certificate program, having been introduced by a JCPH representative at an AAPL conference, and after listening to an inspiring lecture by Dr. David Nash. 

“Then I thought ‘What the heck, why don’t I get the master’s degree?’ So, I went for it,” Colleen said. “And by that time, of course, population health became a widespread topic. Having a master’s degree in population health helped me understand what population health really means for the healthcare ecosystem and what inclusive good health and wellness, backed by the principles of population health, can do for your community.”

Colleen has educated physicians, legislators, and payors about the importance of embracing population health and how to think globally about what patients need to become healthy. 

“The Jefferson program was excellent because the faculty has a wealth of knowledge, excellent communication with applicants and students, and you feel like you’re being taken care of,” she said. “I felt like I was part of a close-knit community helping me to achieve what I set out to do.”  “In fact, after I graduated Dr. Mitchell Kaminski, population health program director,  collaborated with me on two published articles.”

The momentum propelled her to become the Interim Executive Director of the Hawaii Independent Physicians Association. When the 2023 wildfires hit Maui, Colleen used all her accumulated professional and population health knowledge to meet the needs of the survivors. She oversaw emergency shelters, helping the Red Cross by sharing information about her community and how to best facilitate assistance for people with medical and social needs big and small. Food, economic, housing , and transportation insecurity affected this entire community. She was on the front lines.

“When people look at what I’ve done, they see how much I’ve dedicated my life to taking care of my patients and my community,” she said.

Truer words could not be spoken.

Dr. Inouye is currently a board member at AAPL.