Board Member Spotlight: Dr. Sarita Satpathy, Leading with Heart at the Hospital
Foundation News & Updates
For 15 years, Dr. Sarita Satpathy has purposefully marched the halls of Saint Francis Hospital (now owned by UCSF Health).
As a hospitalist – a primary care doctor for patients admitted to a hospital, she coordinates and oversees their care from diagnosis to discharge. With never a moment to pause, Dr. Satpathy has seen everyone from a wealthy longtime resident of Nob Hill to someone who sleeps in a tent in the Tenderloin. Saint Francis has long been the community hospital that takes care of everyone – regardless of income, situation, gender, or status.
Her path to medicine has spanned continents and cultures—from her early experiences shadowing her uncle, a primary care doctor in India who treated patients regardless of their ability to pay—to living and training in India, Spain, England, and across the U.S.
“Saint Francis [Hospital] has all the elements of an international atmosphere,” she says. “The patients, the staff, the stories—it’s a place where every person matters.”
A longtime patient and healthcare advocate, Dr. Satpathy joined the Board of Directors of the Saint Francis Foundation seven years ago. As a member of the Development Committee, co-chaired a prior (very successful) fundraising event for the Foundation, Wine, Women & Shoes, for three years. Additionally, she was co-chair of the Hob Nob Annual Gala in 2024 to benefit the Foundation.
Dr. Satpathy is the kind of board member every nonprofit wants – someone who gives their time, talent and personal resources. She is especially passionate about the Foundation’s tangible, mission-driven work.
“The grants we give are real.” she says. “They go toward safety in the ER, education for nurses, – and equally as important – to local community organizations who are working daily with community members to improve their health and the health of their families. I don’t know any other hospital foundation that gives in the way we do—and I’ve seen the difference firsthand.”
Outside of the hospital and the Foundation, Dr. Satpathy serves as President-Elect of the San Francisco Marin Medical Society and is actively working to build bridges between physicians and community-based initiatives.
When she is not working grueling hours, she enjoys cooking, adventurous international travel, and hiking. She recently moved to Marin, but having lived in Russian Hill for many years, she would often run into patients, hospital staff and others in the neighborhood.
Taking care of her community and being part of an organization that supports that vibrant and diverse community is fundamental to her work and her life.