Healthcare digital marketing leader · Boston

Didi Vukatana

I lead healthcare marketing programs that bring patients in and hold up under compliance review. Most recently I owned digital marketing for Barricaid, an FDA-approved spinal implant, across paid media, lead capture, launch PR, national sales meetings and print.

LinkedIn
Portrait of Didi Vukatana
20% → 100%
Patient lead capture at Barricaid
$70K
Google Ads savings, first half of 2026 vs. the same period in 2025
$27.67 → $0.17
Cost per landing-page visit on Meta after the funnel rebuild
+3,200%
Organic LinkedIn engagement for Barricaid, year over year, with no paid promotion

Launch PR and two national meetings

Delivered a national training meeting three weeks after joining, executed the company's largest sales meeting of the year and wrote the announcement for a device launch covered across the spine trade press.

The stakes

Two company-wide moments shaped the commercial calendar: the National Training Meeting for 75 people, which I delivered three weeks after joining the company, and the launch of the next-generation Narrow Anchor device, built around the year's largest sales meeting.

How I led it

  • Owned the Dallas National Training Meeting end to end, from vendors to on-site operations, and delivered it for 75 attendees within three weeks of joining, largely single-handed.
  • Drove planning and execution of the San Diego National Sales Meeting for 125+ attendees, the company's largest sales gathering of the year, built around the Narrow Anchor launch.
  • Wrote the Narrow Anchor launch announcement and rolled it out with our PR agency, earning coverage in Becker's Spine Review and ORTHOWORLD.
  • Supported the announcement of the procedure's new CPT code, a reimbursement milestone for Barricaid.

The impact

125+Attendees at the company's largest sales meeting of the year
3 weeksTime to deliver a 75-person National Training Meeting after joining the company
5 trade outletsLaunch coverage led by Becker's Spine Review and ORTHOWORLD, with the release carried by Orthopedics This Week, OrthoSpineNews and SPINEMarketGroup, and a Becker's first-case follow-up

Both meetings drew recognition from the CEO and CTO.

Narrow Anchor press release Becker's Spine Review coverage ORTHOWORLD coverage Orthopedics This Week Becker's: first case with the new anchor CPT code announcement

Earning patients' trust

Grew organic LinkedIn engagement 3,200% with no paid promotion and followers 50% across five channels, with every public asset cleared through compliance review.

The stakes

Patients weighing spine surgery need a trained surgeon nearby and information they can trust. In a regulated category, every public word must clear compliance.

How I led it

  • Led Barricaid's organic presence across five platforms, with social listening and quarterly reporting to Quality so no complaint went unlogged.
  • Ran the national DTC program that connects patients with Barricaid-trained surgeons: the website locator, local Google Ads in each surgeon's market, PR and social.
  • Steered every public asset through review with Sales, Compliance, Professional Education and Clinical.

The impact

Followers across five channels+50%
Year over year
Organic LinkedIn engagement+3,200%
Year over year, with no paid promotion; LinkedIn followers up 23%

Taking Barricaid to print in three markets

Ghostwrote the founder's contribution to D CEO's "State of Healthcare" roundtable and ran patient ads in Dallas, Houston and Tampa, each tracked by its own QR code.

The stakes

Barricaid needed to reach two audiences outside the clinic: the business leaders who shape how care is paid for, and patients in markets with a Barricaid-trained surgeon nearby.

How I led it

  • Authored founder Greg Lambrecht's contribution to D CEO's "State of Healthcare" roundtable, positioning Barricaid on total cost of care for Dallas business leaders.
  • Ran print placements in Dallas, Houston and Tampa, including a D CEO ad co-branded with Dr. Michael R. Briseño of North Texas Orthopedics & Spine Center, a Barricaid-trained surgeon.
  • Tracked every placement with its own QR code, so response could be read market by market.

Where it ran

D CEOJune/July 2026 sponsored roundtable alongside Evry Health and CommerceHealthcare leaders, in print and online, plus the Dr. Briseño ad in the same issue
HoustoniaSummer 2026 patient ad, in print and in the digital edition
Tampa MagazineSummer 2026 patient ad, in print and in the digital edition

I owned placements, surgeon co-branding and response tracking; our design team produced the creative with my input on every ad.

D CEO State of Healthcare roundtable page featuring Greg Lambrecht, founder of Barricaid
D CEO roundtable, June/July 2026, ghostwritten for the founder
Full-page Barricaid ad in D CEO featuring Dr. Michael R. Briseño of North Texas Orthopedics and Spine Center
D CEO ad with Dr. Michael R. Briseño
Full-page Barricaid ad in Houstonia titled Suffering From Sciatic Pain?
Houstonia, Summer 2026
D CEO roundtable online

Women's health thought leadership

Grew an OB-GYN's following 60% in seven months through a thought leadership program that helped her land a book deal and paid consulting.

The stakes

Our clients, physicians and advocates in women's health including Let's Talk Menopause, had deep expertise and needed visibility that converted into opportunity.

How I led it

  • Built a thought leadership program for Dr. Somi Javaid, a nationally recognized OB-GYN and the founder of HerMD.
  • Anchored her visibility in two national moments: the launch of The M Factor, a menopause documentary featuring her, and her Inc. 5000 recognition.
  • Turned psychiatrist Dr. Judith Joseph's national TV appearances on GMA and CNN into content for her own channels.
  • Built social activations into client events such as Menopause Awareness Month, and served as the agency's liaison to celebrity partners, including Naomi Watts.

The impact

+60%Follower growth for Dr. Javaid in seven months; the program helped her land a book deal and paid consulting
ForbesPublished my photo of Dr. Javaid with Naomi Watts, October 2024
Forbes article photo of Dr. Somi Javaid with Naomi Watts, credited to Edit Vukatana
My photo of Dr. Somi Javaid and Naomi Watts in Forbes, Oct 2024
Three women at The New Pause Symposium backdrop
The New Pause Symposium, Brooklyn, Oct 2024
Forbes article with my photo Dr. Javaid: The M Factor launch Dr. Javaid: Inc. 5000 Dr. Joseph: GMA appearance content Dr. Joseph: CNN appearance content

Creators, Fashion Week and organic revenue

Generated $9K in hotel revenue from organic social in a single month, September 2026, and ran the hotel's creator partnerships, PR and a New York Fashion Week event over four years.

The stakes

The hotel needed creator reach paid for in stays rather than fees, and its own channels to generate revenue.

How I led it

  • Built a 90-day creator program entirely on barter, trading stays for posts, reels and stories with reposting rights for the hotel.
  • Vetted every creator and set the terms of each partnership.
  • Ran the hotel's February 2024 New York Fashion Week influencer event end to end.

What I lead today

I lead the hotel's organic social, PR and influencer marketing. Recent highlights include a 2026 World Cup partnership with Ole Frøystad ("Mr Row Row"), creator of Norway's viral Viking Row, and a guest-review post credited with September 2026's strongest revenue.

The impact

$9KRevenue attributed to organic social in a single month, September 2026
World Cup 2026Partnership with Ole Frøystad ("Mr Row Row"), creator of Norway's viral Viking Row, whose early video drew tens of millions of views
150+Content pieces from creators with a combined 3.27M followers
+36.2%Instagram impressions during the creator program
30M+Media impressions across Marie Claire México, Marie Claire Colombia, El Tiempo and creator partnerships
Concorde Hotel New York Instagram post: This is what our guests say about us
Guest reviews post, September 2026
Soaking tub facing a window with a view of midtown Manhattan
Creator content from the program
World Cup partnership post, Jul 2026 FIFA on the Viking Row ABC profile of Mr Row Row Marie Claire México feature, May 2025 LUXlife: Best Boutique Luxury Hotel 2025, New York City El Tiempo on Instagram, Apr 2025 Guest reviews post, Sep 2026 Monsieur Lifestyle feature Auldsouls blog Creator vlog on YouTube Antonio Pozo reel Rose Theron reel

Reaching cancer patients during COVID-19

Raised program participation 40% during the pandemic and earned the nonprofit a $5,000 Meta ad credit.

The stakes

COVID-19 forced a signature program online, putting participation and donations at risk.

How I led it

  • Planned the campaign two months out and led a 15-person intern team through launch.
  • Built messaging for four audiences (patients, donors, healthcare professionals and supporters) through testimonial videos, custom copy and infographics.
  • Ran the campaign across Meta, LinkedIn, Twitter and Mailchimp.

The impact

+40%Program participation
$5,000Meta ad credit earned for the nonprofit, plus Donate buttons activated on Instagram and Facebook
Didi Vukatana speaking into a microphone at a Fashion Fights Cancer event
Speaking as a board member at the Fashion Fights Cancer event with Diane von Furstenberg, New York

Operating principles

How I lead

I do my best work on a clear mission, with patients on the other end of it.

  1. 01

    I own it end to end.

    Give me a program and I'll carry it from plan to results. That's how a 75-person national meeting came together three weeks after I joined.

  2. 02

    The numbers make the call.

    I read the data, cut what isn't working and report results to leadership every month.

  3. 03

    Compliance is part of the brief.

    In healthcare every word has to hold up, so I plan for review from day one instead of treating it as the last step.

  4. 04

    High stakes bring out my best.

    Launches, national meetings and live events are where I'm most at home.

Recognition

What leadership said

"Hard to imagine it going much better. The energy and engagement were fantastic."
CTO, Intrinsic Therapeutics, after the San Diego National Sales Meeting
"Your impact has been immediate!"
VP of Marketing, Intrinsic Therapeutics, in a handwritten note

Thanked me by name in his closing remarks.

CEO, Intrinsic Therapeutics, at the Dallas National Training Meeting, three weeks after I joined

About

I founded IT Mania Agency in 2016 and have led 700+ campaigns for 90+ brands. In 2023 I co-founded RedStudio PR, a women's health agency, and in 2025 I went in-house to own digital marketing for Barricaid at Intrinsic Therapeutics.

I sit on the board of Fashion Fights Cancer, and I speak English, Albanian and Italian, plus German and Spanish.

I'm open to senior roles leading digital, patient or event marketing in healthcare, pharma, biotech and hospital systems in Boston.

More work

  • Ferra&CO, AlbaniaBuilt the first digital strategy for the country's leading sugar brand (60% market share), growing its audience 40% year over year.
  • Hot Date Kitchen, BostonLed brand and digital for a carbon-neutral chocolate brand sold online and in 100 stores, earning features in The Boston Globe and Edible Boston.