UPHS – Portage Heroes | Angie Hebert

What is your role at UPHS – Portage?

I am the Director of Information Technology (IT) at UPHS – Portage. 

What was your inspiration for getting into healthcare?

I knew I wanted to be a part of healthcare but wasn’t sure where. Within my previous role in IT in higher education, I was able to work with people and technology and found that I had great success with that but wanted to do more. I reached out to Career Services and heard about Health Informatics and in 2016, I enrolled in the Master of Health Informatics program at Michigan Tech.  Within this program, I was able to work with healthcare liaisons in the UP and went on to graduate in 2018!  

What's a typical day like for you? What is it like working in this field?

Every day is different! Technology is always changing so we work to provide support for the systems and software that we already have, plan for updating outdated legacy systems and improve IT in collaboration with the staff and hospital needs.

IT is the backbone of the hospital so one minute everything can be fine and then a system goes down. We have to be able to adapt and access the issue and work together to find a solution as quickly as possible.

How long have you been employed here? Have you always been in the same position?

I have been with UPHS – Portage for just over a year, hired in October 2023.

What are some of the big changes you've experienced in this position?

There is a broad learning curve within healthcare and IT and rules and regulations are constantly changing. We were able to fill the two positions last year, and we continue to work on documentation and building our team back up.         

What are some of your interests outside of work? What is your favorite gem?

Well, my kids keep my schedule busy with sports and I have two labs Delilah and Aurora (Rory) that get me outside during all the seasons. I also hold the treasurer position for the Houghton Athletic Booster Club and contribute when I can with concessions and fundraisers.   

Hard to pick a favorite place, but you will find my family spending as much time as we can at the beach, especially Agate, Misery Bay, Great Sand Bay and White City, swimming, rock picking and waterfall exploring.  

What do you enjoy most about working at UPHS – Portage?

I love what I do! I have a great team and enjoy working with them every day to support the needs of the hospital.