Issue link: https://beckershealthcare.uberflip.com/i/417381
Save the date! Becker's Hospital Review Annual Meeting – May 7-9, 2015 – Chicago 118 Howard Ainsley was named CEO of Morehead Memorial Hospital in Eden, N.C. Titus Regional Medical Center in Mount Pleasant, Texas, named John Allen CEO. The board of Texas Health Resources in Arlington named Barclay Berdan CEO. Lake Cumberland Regional Hospital in Somerset, Ky., appointed Tim Bess CEO. Gateway Regional Medical Center in Granite City, Ill., named Matt Blevins COO. McKenzie-Willamette Medical Center in Spring- field, Ore., named Chad Campbell CEO. Sitka (Alaska) Community Hospital appointed Jeff Comer CEO. Dallas-based Forest Park Medical Center appoint- ed Archie Drake CEO. El Paso (Texas) Children's Hospital CEO Ray Dziesinski is stepping down from his post to be closer to his family. Gianrico Farrugia, MD, was named CEO of Mayo Clinic's Jacksonville, Fla., campus begin- ning in 2015. Jim FitzPatrick is now the permanent president and CEO of Mercy Medical Center–Sioux City (Iowa). Karen Flaherty-Oxler is the new president of Lancaster (Pa.) General Hospital. Oakland, Calif.-based Alameda Health System named Mark S. Fratzke COO. Kerry Heinrich, JD, was named CEO of Loma Linda (Calif.) University Medical Center and Loma Linda University Children's Hospital, as well as the Behavioral Medicine Center. Sky Ridge Medical Center in Lone Tree, Colo., named Susan Hicks president and CEO. Scott Hill is the new president and CEO of Co- lumbus (Ga.) Regional Health. Meadowlands Hospital Medical Center in Secau- cus, N.J., named Felicia Karsos CEO. Donna Katen-Bahensky, president and CEO of Madison, Wis.-based UW Hospital and Clinics, retired upon elimination of her position. Memorial Hermann The Woodlands (Texas) Hospital named Justin Kendrick COO. Indianapolis-based Community Health Network appointed Joe Kessler CFO. Kevin Lawlor, president and CEO of Huntington (N.Y.) Hospital, will retire Dec. 31. The Kern County Board of Supervisors dismissed Sandra Martin, CFO of Kern Medical Center in Bakersfield, Calif. Natchitoches (La.) Regional Medical Center ap- pointed Brad McCormick CFO. Craig McCoy was named CEO of Emory Saint Joseph's Hospital in Atlanta. John Miller, CEO of Anderson, S.C.-based AnMed Health, plans to step down from his role in 2015. Flowers Hospital in Dothan, Ala., appointed Heath Phillips COO. Sacramento, Calif.-based Sutter Health's CFO Bob Reed announced he will retire in January 2015. Michael Rindler resigned and retired from his role as CEO of St. Anthony's Medical Center in St. Louis. Matt Roberts was named CEO of Glenwood Re- gional Medical Center in West Monroe, La. The Memorial Hospital in Craig, Colo., named John Rossfeld permanent CEO. Pottsville, Pa.-based Schuylkill Health President and CEO John E. Simodejka resigned from his post. Glenn Steele Jr., MD, PhD, announced he is step- ping down from his role as president and CEO of Geisinger Health System next year. The president and CEO of Akron, Ohio-based Summa Health System, Tom Strauss, is retiring Dec. 31. Avera St. Mary's Hospital in Pierre, S.D., named Bob Sutton regional president and CEO. James Tyler was named CEO of Smyth County Community Hospital in Marion, Va. Louise Urban was named the new president and CEO of Jefferson Hospital in Pittsburgh. East Chicago, Ind.-based St. Catherine Hospital named Art Vasquez vice president and CFO. Sarasota (Fla.) Memorial Hospital named David Verinder permanent president and CEO. Cibola General Hospital in Grants, N.M., named Donald Weidemann CEO. Hospital & Health System Executive Moves When I'm not on the 20th floor of the T. Boone Pickens Building, where our cancer center's administrative offices reside, I can normally be found meet- ing with researchers in my lab on the south side of our campus. I run a ba- sic science lab working to understand cancer processes to illuminate a path toward improved cancer detection and treatment. We're also looking at the relationship between aging and degenerative diseases. I've always loved my work in the lab. Over the past few years, I focused a great deal on helping other researchers at MD Anderson with their research programs, particularly our cancer moonshot initiative. How do you revitalize yourself? That's easy: time with my family. We have two girls and a boy. After spending time with them, I always feel refreshed and focused. I also enjoy vigorous exercise. What's one piece of advice you remember most clearly? Have the courage to drive change that improves the lives of patients and be prepared to take criticism seriously but not personally. What do you consider your greatest achievement at MD Ander- son so far? That's difficult and almost impossible to answer given the many achievements of our current faculty and those who came before us. I would have to say that there are two things that I find truly remarkable about this institution. First, it's the unwavering focus on the patient. We all know that healthcare organizations are sometimes guilty of appearing impersonal or daunting. But not here. From the moment a patient steps out of the car, an employee or volunteer is there to meet them and get them where they need to be, while at the same time, making that person feel at home. Once in a while, I head over to our main entrance and watch this as it takes place. This patient-centered approach can be found throughout a patient's entire cancer journey at MD Anderson. Of course we can always do better when it comes to meeting the needs of our patients, but we have something truly great here to maintain and build upon. Secondly, I would say our greatest achievement is consistency. Since we were established over 70 years ago, MD Anderson has never lost sight of our one and only mission: to end this terrible disease. We're tremendously proud of the advances in cancer prevention, detection and treatment that stemmed from work in our labs and clinics. We're also excited about the promise of our current work such as our immunotherapy program, which is working to rapidly expand on its past successes in developing therapies that use the body's own immune system to attack cancer. Right now, I'm also particularly excited about our work in breast cancer. Just this past summer, we were pleased to announce that Craig Jordan, PhD, who is known for developing the lifesaving drug tamoxifen and several related compounds used to fight cancer, is joining MD Anderson. We're excited to see what he accomplishes next. n