When she reached the 10-year anniversary of working in health insurance, Natalie Malm (Bolinger) (10) walked out of her job. She wasn’t sure what came next, but she knew it was time to step away. Working in a chronic state of burnout was no longer just impacting her job satisfaction; it was taking a toll on her life outside of work.
Malm gave herself permission to enjoy a season of rest, and then six months later, to the day, she drove to her first shift as executive assistant at Celebrating Life Community Health Center (CLCHC). She didn’t expect to land back in the healthcare system, but when she saw the job listing, she felt an alignment with her skillset and her values. The former mentorship of her professors at PLNU had taught her to be curious and adaptable in her approach to a career, so she decided to apply. The interview process confirmed it was the right fit for both Malm and the team at the CLCHC.
In May of 2023, Malm filled the role of supporting the organization’s staff who provide free and low-cost medical, dental, behavioral, pediatric and women’s health services. Shortly after being hired, she also began managing benefits for the community health center’s 52 employees. At the time, the growing organization lacked an HR department, and Malm — having previously handled insurance for nearly a decade — joined the team with the needed skillset. In her first few months on the job, Malm went from managing meetings, calendars, and credentials to also interviewing candidates, onboarding staff, and managing benefits.
Nearly three years later, the organization has grown to over 200 employees. Malm was able to release her personnel responsibilities to an official HR department, but her time of juggling both admin and HR duties earned her a well-deserved promotion from executive assistant to administrative services manager in June of 2025. When asked what she enjoys most about her new role, Malm had a surprising answer: the paperwork.
“When it comes to the doctors and other clinical providers serving patients, there’s a lot of paperwork on the backend to be able to order prescriptions for people,” Malm said. “I have found joy in doing this for them and in keeping everyone credentialed.”
“When it comes to the doctors and other clinical providers serving patients, there’s a lot of paperwork on the backend to be able to order prescriptions for people,” Malm said. “I have found joy in doing this for them and in keeping everyone credentialed.”
Even with her recent promotion, Malm continues to work closely with the CEO, Sergey Sergeyev, who fled Russia as a refugee over 30 years ago because of his faith. He founded the health center in 2018 in memory of his daughter, Kristina Sergeyeva. Malm believes his lived experience and servant leadership is what created a safe, hospitable environment for others who have fled from war and violence. During her time at the CLCHC, Malm has noticed many Russian and Ukrainian refugees coming in for medical support, grateful to receive care in their native language.
Being in close proximity to the patients has given Malm a new perspective.
“I’ve been an OC girl my whole life, and I didn’t understand the need for provider care to the uninsured and underinsured until I was hired here. There are some people here who don’t have health coverage at all, so we put them on a sliding scale discount fee based on their household income …. It’s really opened my eyes to being more empathetic, having the knowledge that there are populations out there that are in need.”
Since joining the team in 2023, Malm has celebrated the organization’s growth to now serving patients in over 20 different languages across five cities in Orange County — Costa Mesa, Irvine, Lake Forest, Mission Viejo, and Santa Ana. She is especially proud of how her team drives around Costa Mesa in a mobile medical van to bring healthcare to those who are unhoused. In collaboration with Cal-Optima Health, the CLCHC sees more than 80 unhoused patients on a regular basis and, when possible, supports them in getting off the street and into transitional housing.
“Our providers really look at the person as a whole person,” Malm explained. “We’ve had patients come in and the provider will see their teeth and be like, ‘Oh my gosh, I’m going to walk you down to our dental clinic in the next suite over because you need to see the dentist.’ Then they’ll be at the dentist and we can see they have some mental health challenges, so we can walk them across the hall to the behavioral health department. They are already in our system, so it’s super easy.”
From Malm’s perspective, the CLCHC is remarkable because the staff choose to meet the dynamic needs of each patient with great care and compassion. They eagerly support people with everything from primary care to addressing acute needs. Malm is grateful to be the one working diligently behind the scenes, lightening the load for frontline staff so they can wholeheartedly serve their patients.
“We have a doctor who works six days a week. He gives so much of his time here, and he calls me on a weekly basis, and it’s made me realize that doctors really have to focus on their patients. So when I get a call from my providers that need help with anything related to admin, I’m happy to do so. They are always so grateful.”
Malm affirms that what drives the community health center to provide wraparound, accessible healthcare is a deeply rooted faith in Jesus. Her work days begin with a shared word of prayer, and meetings often start with the reading of a Bible verse. She believes this impacts the way staff are able to care for each other and their patients, and she has felt it transform her former burnout into a growing passion for credentialing — which she’s already proven to be great at.
“We have to be in compliance with Community Health Centers’ requirements by HRSA (Health Resources and Services Administration),” Malm explained. “Last year, we achieved 100% compliance with no deficiencies or conditions. It was a pretty big accomplishment. I’ve never done credentialing, but I received 100% on the credentialing portion. It has pushed me to want to be a certified credentialer.”
In February, Malm returned to the place where the seeds of her career were planted: PLNU. She likes to joke that she chose the one major without a niche — managerial and organizational communications — but ended up graduating with a dynamic knowledge base that prepared her well for an unexpected trajectory into healthcare.
“It was a very emotional feeling for me. PLNU prepared me [for my career] because of the way the professors are with the students. They all care about each individual student and it makes a big impact. If I went to a bigger school, I wouldn’t have had that experience.”
“I was just at Point Loma for the first time in over ten years,” Malm shared. “It was a very emotional feeling for me. PLNU prepared me [for my career] because of the way the professors are with the students. They all care about each individual student and it makes a big impact. If I went to a bigger school, I wouldn’t have had that experience.”
Outside of her career, Malm covets her quiet time at home and enjoys spending time with her husband, Ryan. Her favorite way to unwind is by snuggling her Rottweiler Lola, cooking a meal, or getting lost in her favorite reality TV shows on Bravo. On the rare occasion when she and Ryan share a weekend off, Malm savors their date at a local brunch spot or a meandering walk with Lola through downtown Tustin.
