About Us

Karen Huyck

Co-Founder

Karen Huyck, MD, PhD, MPH, FACOEM, is the co-founder and Medical Director of Work Health CoLab. Dr. Huyck is also an Associate Professor of Medicine at Dartmouth in the Section of Occupational and Environmental Medicine. Before launching Work Health CoLab, she served as the Medical Director of Vermont RETAIN (Retaining Employment and Talent After Injury/Illness Network), a statewide work disability prevention program. Dr. Huyck completed her MD and PhD at the University of Vermont and her MPH and Residency in Occupational and Environmental Medicine at the Harvard School of Public Health. She is a former American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine Occupational Physician Scholar and Howard Hughes Predoctoral Fellow. She has held diverse roles in occupational medicine, including as an on-site company physician, in orthopedic clinics, and as an expert medical examiner performing impairment ratings and utilization review. Her work focuses on functional recovery and complex return-to-work. Her current clinical and research interests include access to evidence-based work-health services, prevention of work disability, and improving the physical and mental health of workers in their communities. She has won numerous teaching awards and is frequently invited to talk about the clinician role in return-to-work.

Michela Capobianco

CEO & Co-Founder

Michela Capobianco, MBA, is the co-founder and Chief Executive Officer of Work Health CoLab. Michela also serves as the Executive Director of the New England College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine (NECOEM), a nonprofit dedicated to improving the health and safety of workers, workplaces, and environments, and as the Program Director for Workers Comp Care, which provides education and collaboration opportunities for professionals in the workers’ compensation field. Together, these organizations reach and support thousands of occupational health and workers’ compensation professionals annually across New England. Through these roles, Michela has developed a deep passion for supporting the care teams that work to help injured workers recover and re-engage in their work life and as active members of their communities. Before her transition into healthcare and nonprofit space, Michela spent more than 13 years in the high-tech enterprise sector at EMC Corporation (now Dell Technologies), where she advanced business operations, fostered interdisciplinary collaboration, and built strategic partner-based programs—critical skills as she seeks to drive organizational growth and innovation in all her work. Michela earned her Bachelor of Arts from Providence College and then continued for her Master of Business Administration from Northeastern University.

Kenji Saito

Chairman of the Board

Kenji Saito, MD, JD, FACOEM, is a dual-credentialed physician-attorney and a globally recognized leader in Total Worker Health, bringing extensive enterprise and strategic experience to Work Health CoLab. Currently holding faculty appointments at Dartmouth College, Harvard University, and the University of Pennsylvania, he is dedicated to training the next generation of occupational health leaders. A Past-President of both the American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine (ACOEM) and the New England College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine (NECOEM), Dr. Saito has previously served as the Global Corporate Medical Director at Owens Corning and Senior Director of Global Wellness at Procter & Gamble. His clinical and strategic focus seamlessly integrates digital health innovation, corporate risk management, and employee well-being to advance the health, safety, and recovery of workers across diverse industries.

Elizabeth "Tucker" O'Day

Lead Work Health Coach

Tucker O’Day brings more than 20 years of expertise in occupational health, safety, and disability prevention to her role as Lead Work Health Coach with Work Health CoLab. Her career is dedicated to helping individuals navigate the journey of remaining at or returning to work following injury or illness. Prior to joining Work Health CoLab, Tucker served as Core Director for Vermont RETAIN, a statewide work disability prevention program, before shifting her focus to participant coaching. Her foundational experience includes over a decade within the Mass General Brigham system, where she transitioned from clinical outpatient physical therapy to establishing the organization’s first ergonomics program, serving over 60,000 employees. She later provided risk management consulting for AIM Mutual Insurance and led a large-scale, participatory ergonomics program at Boston Children’s Hospital. A lifelong learner currently pursuing her Doctorate in Physical Therapy at A.T. Still University, Tucker holds a Master’s in Physical Therapy from Washington University and a Master’s in Work Environment, Occupational Safety, and Ergonomics from UMass Lowell. She is also a Certified Case Manager (CCM). Outside of her professional work, Tucker stays active in her community by volunteering with a local therapeutic riding program. To recharge, she enjoys painting with acrylics, running, biking, and exploring the outdoors with her family and her dogs.

Sarah Probst

Grants/Research Strategy Lead

Sarah Probst, MPH is the Grants/Resources Strategy Lead for Work Health CoLab. Before joining Work Health CoLab, Sarah worked as a project manager for the Vermont RETAIN (Retaining Employment and Talent After Injury/Illness Network), a statewide work disability prevention initiative. Sarah earned her Master of Public Health at the Dartmouth Institute. Sarah began with her Bachelor of ARts in Anthropology and European History from Franklin Pierce University but pivoted her career ambitions when she realized that Archaeology was not the right career path for her. Before joining the Vermont RETAIN team Sarah worked for seven years in Graduate Medical Education at Dartmouth Health as a program coordinator for medical residency and fellowship programs.

Carrie Freitag

Financial Strategist

Carrie Freitag, MPS, CRA, serves as a Financial and Planning Strategist for the Work Health CoLab. She runs a private consulting business specializing in planning, project management, financial strategy, and grant and contract administration. Prior to joining the Work health CoLab team, she served as a project manager for the Vermont RETAIN (Retaining Employment and Talent After Injury/Illness Network) demonstration program, a statewide work disability prevention initiative. In this role, she provided integrative project management, budget development, contracting, and sustainability planning support. Carrie earned her Master of Professional Studies from Cornell University’s Sloan Program in Healthcare Administration and is a Certified Research Administrator. She draws from ~25 years of experience leading the financial and administrative operations of research, health, and human service programs in academic and health care organizations such as Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, and Johns Hopkins University. As a consultant, she has focused on large grant funded multi-center multi-institution projects and public-private initiatives.