With 25 years of healthcare finance experience, Amy Crouch steps into the CFO role for HSHS's Wisconsin market.
Hospital Sisters Health System's Wisconsin market just got a new CFO, but she's no newbie to the finance game. Amy Crouch had been serving as interim CFO for the Wisconsin market since fall of 2025 and comes to HSHS after serving as CFO at Riverview Health in Noblesville, Indiana. She steps into the role with 25 years of healthcare finance experience under her belt and a collaborative, results-driven leadership style.
Serving A Diverse Market
Crouch highlighted the diverse market she will serve as an opportunity to dive into a collaborative workflow, noting that the diversity of hospitals in HSHS's Wisconsin market shapes a systemwide, network-driven financial strategy that balances rural access with advanced tertiary care. She described Oconto Falls as a 25-bed critical access hospital and Sheboygan as a Level II trauma center, both tightly integrated with St. Vincent Hospital in Green Bay, which serves as the system's highest-acuity hub.
That structure allows smaller community hospitals to stabilize patients locally while relying on St. Vincent for complex cases such as stroke care, NICU services, and other advanced interventions, supporting both access and efficiency across the region.
"It's an incredible ecosystem," she said, adding that the coordinated flow between outlying hospitals and the Green Bay campus ensures patients can quickly receive the right level of care.
While she favors a team-based mindset, she noted, "this really is a family," underscoring the close operational and financial interdependence of the market's hospitals.
Capital Allocation
Crouch said HSHS's Catholic, nonprofit mission is the first and most important lens in capital allocation decisions, even when financial pressures are intense. She described a formal discernment process that begins with mission alignment before financial returns are considered.
"Does this capital meet our mission?" is the first question, she said, followed by a thorough evaluation of return on investment and how the spending benefits colleagues and patients.
She emphasized the health system's responsibility to serve all people regardless of ability to pay, while also administering resources built by prior leaders with strong financial discipline. That legacy has enabled HSHS to move forward with major investments, including a $270 million tower at St. Mary's Hospital in Green Bay, scheduled to open in 2028. The project, which will add 30 beds, reflects the expected population growth in the area and the rising demand for services from an aging population.
"We are very fortunate that building new beds is in our strategic plan and we can afford to do it," she said, adding that her 25 years in healthcare leadership have allowed her to step into the role ready to "hit the ground running."
Collaboration
Crouch exemplifies a collaborative, confidence-building leadership style rooted in curiosity rather than perfection. Grounded in mission and relationships across clinical, operational, and financial teams, Crouch's approach reflects a leader who empowers others, normalizes challenge, and models resilience and shared accountability.
She emphasized that strong collaboration between finance leaders and physicians is foundational to a health system's success. She highlighted the Wisconsin Prevea physician partnership as a key factor in achieving both quality and financial outcomes.
"Every successful health system I've been in… the foundation of it is good provider relationships," she said.
She also pointed to her close working relationship with the system's CMO, noting that when she was unavailable for a town hall, he delivered her financial presentation—an example of the strong partnership she values.
Looking Ahead
Crouch said that financial success in the next three to five years for HSHS's Northeast Wisconsin market goes beyond margins and balance sheets, focusing instead on long-term community impact and patient access.
"To me, success looks like meaningfully improving patient access so that every individual in our region can get timely, high-quality care without unnecessary barriers," she said.
Key initiatives include the $270 million tower, which will enhance clinical capacity and operational efficiency, and the new rehabilitation hospital in partnership with LifePoint Rehabilitation, an operating division of Lifepoint Health, both designed to position the region as a destination for comprehensive, high-acuity care close to home.
Marie DeFreitas is the CFO editor for HealthLeaders.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
Balancing rural critical access hospitals with tertiary hubs requires tight financial integration and clear referral pathways to preserve access and efficiency.
HSHS' capital decisions start with mission alignment, supported by decades of financial stewardship that now enable transformative investments such as a $270M inpatient tower.
Durable provider relationships, grounded in trust, transparency, and shared accountability, are foundational to sustainable quality and financial performance.