PHYSICIAN CEO Alumni Directory

Catherine Choi, MD is an Interventional Pain Management Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation physician. She studied

at the University of Illinois College of Medicine in Chicago, IL and went on to West Suburban Hospital in Oak Park, IL

for her internship in Internal Medicine completing her physical medicine and rehabilitation training at Schwab

Rehabilitation Hospital in Chicago, IL. Enjoying working with her hands and procedural techniques as well as facing the

challenges of chronic pain management and chronic illness, she furthered her training at the University of Chicago

Department of Anesthesiology and Critical Care completing a fellowship in Interventional Pain Management. Since

completion of her training, she has worked both briefly in private practice settings and recently completed four and half

years working for a larger semi academic institution tasked with creating a chronic pain program. While she learned much

medicine through all of her training and employment opportunities, she intentionally had shied away from any business

matters with the determination of leaving those decisions to the "business folks." Growing as a physician and leader

however, she learned that these two subjects "business and medicine" are inherently married and in order to practice

medicine to the fullest potential, she would have to study business as well. This fact particularly rang true when she

attempted to grow and expand this chronic pain program in a business driven environment. She recognized the growing

trend of physician/practitioner burn out in various specialties and hopes the PCEO education may provide further

insight as to tangible methods to counter this in the business oriented environment medicine has become. Humbly, she

presents for this course to immerse in furthering education and physician empowerment with like minded colleagues.

Catherine has lived in Chicago for most of her life and is happily married with two young and energetic boys. She was the

middle of two sisters, the younger of which had a chronic illness and recently passed away in late 2016. Exposure to

chronic illness in a close family member has gifted Catherine with the additional insight into the shortcomings of

medicine and business and her personal mission is to strive to continue to educate herself further to become a better

physician. Her passion is teaching and she hopes that her life work will one day help to make a deep impact to both

patients and providers. She has made the difficult decision to leave her hometown Chicago to accept a new position in

the Twin Cities, Minnesota. Here, working again in a private practice setting, she hopes to be able to utilize her education

through the PCEO program to strengthen her role as a physician and leader.

Her personal interests include all things crafty (she likes to work with her hands and create) such as cooking, baking,

knitting, sewing in addition to running, yoga and event planning. A successful weekend always ends with a bustling home

of close friends and family enjoying fellowship and good food.