Healthcare executives share their thoughts on how the next big disruptor will be perceived by the industry and the steps that organization will need to take to succeed.
It was only three years ago that Amazon, Berkshire Hathaway, and JPMorgan Chase joined together to form Haven Healthcare in an effort to improve employee healthcare options. When Haven was initially announced, it was surrounded by media fanfare and many thought the joint venture would disrupt the healthcare payers market.
However, the business giants announced last month that Haven would disband by the end of February. Speculation around why the joint venture failed include lack of traction towards goals, unfocused execution of organizational strategy, a high turnover rate in the C-suite, and the fact that disruption healthcare is not an easy feat.
Haven is not the first company to attempt to disrupt the healthcare industry and it certainly won't be the last.
Given the likelihood that another company will attempt to be the ‘next Haven,’ HealthLeaders spoke with five healthcare executives about how the next big disruptor will be perceived by the industry and what steps such an organization should take to succeed in this tough endeavor.
‘Absolute and maniacal transparency’
Ashok Subramanian, CEO ofCentivo, an employee health plan, says he believes the next Haven, or an organization that self-styles itself as the next Haven, will be "viewed skeptically."
"Given that Haven tried to come out with great fanfare, then was not able to be successful, naturally breeds skepticism," he says.
Subramanian adds that there is growing skepticism among the provider community following a top-down approach to healthcare reform and “declaring that they are going to be successful.”
"What we are seeing is enthusiasm for more bottom-up approaches, employers working with organizations to take matters into their own hands,” he says. “That, like a lot of community driven efforts, will probably be viewed more positively than any organization that would at least label itself as the next Haven."
Subramanian suggests organizations should focus on transparency and the "true spirit of the partnership."
"Nothing in this industry can successfully move the needle without a commitment to absolute and maniacal transparency around financial flows, around data, around understanding that ultimately employers who are self-funded are responsible for their own health plans. And that was one of the greatest failures of the first Haven," he says.
According to Subramanian, organizations should collaborate "community by community” with providers that have committed to move the industry towards value-based care and willing to “collaboratively partner with agents of change." He says these organizations are accepted over "large organizations who feel like they can fix these things on their own."
Haven’s demise breeds caution
Michael Abrams, managing partner and co-founder of Numerof & Associates, a healthcare management consulting company, says he also believes the next big industry disruptor will be viewed with uncertainty.
"In many ways, I think the demise of Haven made it that much more difficult for any organization to claim that same mantle," Abrams says. "They brought so much firepower to their announced mission of more or less fixing healthcare, that now that they've closed their shop, the industry may very well take it as an admission that the problem is just not solvable, because it couldn't be solved by those superstars."
He also says that while obstacles remain, there is no lack of disruptors currently working in the market.
"There is a long list of disruptors that are working to come up with innovations that will make the money, and in most cases, lower the cost of care," he says.
Among those disruptors, Abrams explained, are Amazon, (which was one-third of the partnership behind Haven), and the U.S. government. To disrupt and change healthcare, he says organizations need to look towards those who are making waves in the industry.
"To change the rules of the game will take a level of political will," Abrams said. "That is the closest approximation to a big idea and will actually change healthcare."
Need a uniform strategy
When it comes to healthcare disruptors, Craig Maloney, CEO of Maestro Health, a third-party administrator for employee benefits, says he believes the focus should be on the members served.
"I'm a big believer in starting with the consumer," Maloney says. "So many of the end users, whether it's my 80-year-old mother, the Gen Xers, or even people in healthcare [have] so much confusion. Anybody coming into this space needs to be able to impact that digesting healthcare on a daily basis."
He adds: "You also have to serve the employer groups, since they're the drivers of so much of the healthcare delivery out there today. Anytime you talk about transformation; it comes with risk. You need to be able to digest that risk, and tolerate that risk, to facilitate change."
Maloney says for the next big disruptor to succeed, they should have a uniform strategy, a focus on not only technology but also on "the human side of things" and "the wherewithal to commit” for a long period of time.
"Haven proved out that three years is not a long commitment in terms of disrupting such an established, complex, and even odd industry," Maloney says. "When [I] talk to other organizations who are looking to impact and change healthcare, [they're looking at a 10-, 15-, or 20-year commitment.]"
When organizations are first starting out, Maloney suggests they start small instead of starting big.
Mark Nathan, CEO of Zipari, a technology company specialized in health insurance, says the next big disruptor should work in conjunction with payers and providers to succeed in their mission of disrupting the healthcare space.
"Payers and providers have to be part of the equation," Nathan says. "Payers and providers have made huge investments in their systems. There's a lot of regulation and emphasis on keeping everything running efficiently, but not a lot of emphasis on innovation. And so, to build that next generation of disruption for healthcare, they have to be at the table solving the problem."
He also says there should be a focus largely on customer experience to succeed, including consistent communication and messaging.
"The patient at the center of everything," Nathan says. "We have to get that alignment between the payers, the providers, and a patient. No matter where the member engages with the payer, they should get a consistent message that's going to … improve their health. If payers get that message up to their members, then the payer brands will start to improve, their Net Promoter Score will start to improve because they'll be trusted. That's something that's missing in this industry that is critically important."
‘Very pessimistic’ about the next Haven
Steven Goldstein, MD, founder of Houston Healthcare Initiative, a website which offers resources to people and organizations who want to change the current healthcare industry, is not optimistic for disruptors who want to change the current healthcare system through technology and innovation.
"If we go back to first principles, the primary purpose of healthcare is to keep patients well,” Goldstein says. “The secondary purpose is to care for people when they get sick. But our current system is backwards, it primarily cares for the sick, and only secondarily tries to keep the patients well. The current system of managed care frowns on innovation. In my opinion, delivery of medical care lags the technology by about 25 years. They're not innovative, they don't want to change the system, and that's the problem."
Goldstein notes that it is difficult for disrupters to succeed in the current system.
"I'm very pessimistic that we're going to get much innovation, like the Haven ideas, accepted by the healthcare industry in the current way it's set up," he says.
Anthem will acquire InnovaCare Health's Puerto-Rico based subsidiaries, including its Medicare Advantage and Medicaid plans.
Anthem, Inc. has entered into an agreement with InnovaCare Health to acquire several of its affiliates in Puerto Rico, the companies announced Tuesday morning.
InnovaCare, based in White Plains, New York, is a value-based health insurance company with an integrated portfolio of health plans, medical organizations, and clinical networks.
According to the press release, the Indianapolis-based insurer will acquire InnovaCare's Puerto Rico-based subsidiaries MMM Holdings, LLC (“MMM”), its Medicare Advantage plan MMM Healthcare, LLC, and its affiliated companies and Medicaid plan.
MMM, Puerto Rico’s largest Medicare Advantage plan, is "one of the fastest-growing vertically integrated healthcare organizations in the United States," according to the press release, and serves more than 267,000 Medicare Advantage members and 305,000 Medicaid members in Puerto Rico.
“We are pleased to expand Anthem’s commitment to serve Medicare and Medicaid-eligible individuals and consumers to Puerto Rico,” Gail K. Boudreaux, Anthem president and CEO, said in the press release. “We remain focused on providing services that drive greater value while giving members access to care and services that meet their diverse needs, enhance their experience, and help them lead healthier lives.”
The transaction was announced about a week after Anthem released its Q4 2020 earnings report, where the company reported an operating income of $31.5 billion for the quarter. At the end of 2020, Anthem had nearly 43 million medical members, up 4.7% year-over-year.
MMM has a network of specialized clinics and independent physician associations, over a dozen offices across Puerto Rico, and holds the “only 4.5 Stars Medicare Advantage contract in Puerto Rico from the Centers of Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS,)" according to the press release.
"This transaction aligns with Anthem’s vision to be an innovative, valuable and inclusive healthcare partner by providing care management programs that improve the lives of the people we serve," Felicia Norwood, Anthem’s executive vice president and president of the government business division, said in a statement. "Our approach to the whole-health needs of our members and a focus on addressing the social drivers of health will enable us to make a positive difference in the health of our communities."
A Health Affairs study found "excess all-cause mortality" was much higher in Black and Hispanic populations between January 2011 and the beginning of the pandemic in April 2020.
Compared to white people, Black people and Hispanic people saw a large increase in all-cause mortality during the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic compared to past years, according to a Health Affairs study released Monday.
The study authors, including Maria Polyakova, assistant professor of medicine at Stanford University, looked at U.S. population data for all-cause mortality by race and ethnicity between January 2011 and April 2020 to better understand "the overall impact of the pandemic than mortality attributable to COVID-19 directly."
The study detailed the excess of deaths per 10,000 people nationwide for the following races and ethnicities during April 2020, compared to the time between January 2011 and April 2020:
Black people saw an excess of 6.8 deaths per 10,000 people
Hispanic people saw an excess of 4.3 deaths per 10,000 people
Asian people saw an excess of 2.7 deaths per 10,000 people
White people saw an excess of 1.5 deaths per 10,000 people
The study noted that while Michigan and Louisiana saw a similar number of excess mortalities in white people, both states "had markedly different excess Black mortality." Researchers found similar results in Pennsylvania compared to Rhode Island.
While Wisconsin experienced "no significant white excess mortality," the state saw a "significant" amount of Black excess mortality, according to the study.
The study is the latest evidence that the COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated many disparities in healthcare, including those affecting vulnerable populations based on race and age. While hospitals and health systems, organizations, and the Biden administration have pushed to address these in recent months, the study’s authors stated that there is still more work to be done.
"Further work understanding the causes of geographic variation in racial and ethnic disparities—the relevant roles of social and environmental factors relative to comorbidities and of the direct and indirect health effects of the pandemic—is crucial for effective policy making," the study authors wrote.
The "No Surprises Act," which will take effect January 1, 2022, will ban surprise medical bills and eliminate out-of-network balance billing.
The recently passed "No Surprises Act" will "constrain cash flow at physician staffing companies and reduce negotiating clout for air ambulance operators," according to two reports released by Moody's Investors Service Thursday afternoon.
The "No Surprises Act," which will take effect January 1, 2022, will ban surprise medical bills and eliminate of out-of-network balance billing. The act passed as a part of the $900 billion coronavirus relief omnibus package in December.
According to the Moody's analysis, companies that directly bill patients for healthcare services will have “some level of exposure” to the “No Surprises Act."
Physician staffing firms and air ambulance operators are among the affected companies that are likely be negatively affected by the new legislation.
Physician staffing companies will see a dip in cash flow, Moody’s stated, especially those that staff operating rooms, provide anesthesiology and radiology services, and hospitals that rely on the outsourcing capabilities of staffing firms.
"Many rated staffing companies carry leverage, cash flow and liquidity metrics that place them well into speculative-grade territory," Jonathan Kanarek, a Moody’s vice president-senior credit officer, said in a press release. "As such, even a modest reduction in collections could negatively impact cash flow and liquidity, placing further pressures on their credit profiles."
According to the ratings agency, air ambulance operators that "rely on their ability to directly bill patients" for remaining funds due after commercial insurers pay will also see a negative effect as well.
"The ability to directly balance bill patients has been particularly important for air ambulance companies, which often provide services on an out-of-network basis,” Kailash Chhaya, a vice president-senior analyst for Moody's, said in the press release.
“Healthcare providers generally favor the arbitration approach which preserves some of their negotiating leverage,” Chhaya added in the press release. “This is especially true for air ambulance operators because determining a benchmark in-network reimbursement rate on which to base out-of-network transports is challenging.”
According to Moody's, over the next year, air ambulance providers will pursue in-network contracts with insurers to further reduce “their exposure to uncertainty created by out-of-network claims."
Mariners Hospital, located in Tavernier, Florida, is a 25-bed critical care access hospital. Fishermen's Community Hospital, located in Marathon, Florida, is currently being rebuilt after Hurricane Irma destroyed the hospital in 2017 and is slated to reach completion in the fall. Currently, the hospital is serving patients from a modular facility.
In his most recent role, Grossman served as CEO of St. Mary's Medical Center in Blue Springs, Missouri, a medical center that is a part of Prime Healthcare.
Prior to that, he served as CEO of Broward Health Coral Springs in Coral Springs, Florida, and Salah Foundation Children's Hospital in Fort Lauderdale, two hospitals that are a part of Broward Health.
"Jay Hershoff, Chair of the Board of Directors, and I are pleased to announce the appointment of Drew Grossman as the CEO of Baptist Health’s two hospitals in the Florida Keys," Bo Boulenger, executive vice president and chief operating officer of Baptist Health South Florida, said in a press release. "Drew is an experienced executive who understands the value of balancing patient experience, quality, physician relations, employee engagement, finance and community involvement."
"[Grossman] has been a dedicated leader in each of the communities he has served. We are excited to welcome him to Baptist Health and back to South Florida," Hershoff, chair of the board of directors, added in the same press release.
Grossman is succeeding the retiring Rick Freeburg, who has led as CEO of Mariners Hospital since 2010 and Fishermen's Community Hospital since 2017.
Jennifer Perry, managing principal for FMG Leading, underscores the importance of culture and human capital during the M&A process.
HealthLeaders released an Intelligence Report in June 2020 titled, Healthcare M&A: Moving Forward in a Post-COVID-19 Landscape, which found that stakeholders “strongly believe that consolidations will continue to be a significant trend in the healthcare sector."
Despite concerns about the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, hospitals and health systems continue to participate in successful M&A activity. Still, there have also been instances of soured relationships or unmet needs leading to failed M&A, lawsuits, executives leaving, or losing staff.
A prime example of this is the ongoing saga between Hoag Memorial Hospital and Providence St. Joseph.
In 2012, Hoag, an Orange County-based nonprofit regional healthcare delivery network, joined St. Joseph Health, a nonprofit health system based in Irvine, California. Then, in 2016, St. Joseph merged with Providence Health, a nonprofit health system based in Renton, Washington, to create Providence St. Joseph Health.
In May 2020, Hoag filed a lawsuit to split from Providence Health, due to the failed implementation of Hoag's initial vision in joining St. Joseph Health. The lawsuit is currently ongoing.
To better understand the role of human capital in healthcare M&A activity, HealthLeaders spoke with Jennifer Perry, managing principal for FMG Leading, who said that culture should be considered during negotiations in order to create a successful integration and detailed why it's an important part of the organizational strategy.
This transcript has been edited for clarity and brevity.
HealthLeaders: What M&A best practices should healthcare executives keep in mind when they are exploring a possible transaction?
Jennifer Perry: Some of the recent information I've seen out there is that there's been a big uptick in [in M&A activity].
One of the things that resonated with me from [the HealthLeaders M&A] survey is the fact that oftentimes, why mergers collapse is because there are certain aspects that [organizations] don't pay enough attention to early on in the process. That ends up coming back to cause issues and levels of misalignment.
[The issues] fall into three categories:
Culture. Ensuring that there's both an understanding, clarity, and alignment around not only the existing cultures of both organizations, but also around what that culture and identity is for that merged organization going forward [can lead to success.]
Stakeholder management throughout the process. Where I've seen these [mergers] go south is [when] [the merging organizations don't] engage [the organization's] stakeholders. Another that often is discounted, and is critical, are community stakeholders. You'd be amazed how important and energized a community can be when they see that a beloved hospital or organization is being acquired or taken over by another.
Clarity. Not only around expectations and assumptions, but what the integration plan [is], and planning that early on using and engaging stakeholders from both organizations. I have found that if you take advantage of that process early on, you're more likely to end up with a successful merger where people are engaged, as well as a clear roadmap for how that acquisition will move forward and carry out the expected benefits associated with it.
HL: Is there a best practice checklist that can accompany the legal steps and encompass those three areas during M&A activity?
Perry: Sometimes when these transactions happen, people get so focused on the due diligence of the finances, systems, and legal structures that they forget this is about bringing two organizations and sets of cultures together.
We use a framework to evaluate different aspects of human capital. We call it our "Human Capital Index," and it includes six drivers with a series of assessments and questions to understand.
At a high level, those categories are:
Leadership quality. What is your leadership structure [and] leadership philosophy as it relates to leading the organization? That includes the governance as well as management systems and structures in the organization, [including] capabilities.
Strategic alignment. What is the strategic intent of each organization and the combined organization? [The aim is] getting clear around what success looks like there.
Culture and identity. We'll often do a culture assessment or values assessment between both organizations to understand where there's alignment and real differences in culture. Oftentimes, when an acquirer comes into an organization, they don't spend enough time understanding the legacy culture. They move too quickly to superimpose their own process management and culture in the acquisition, and don't understand the impact that can have as opposed to honoring the existing identity and culture of the prior organization.
Engagement and retention. This is looking at your workforce and how you engage your workforce. How do you manage your workforce and what's involved in that?
Agility. What is the ability of the organization in terms of innovation, the way in which they make decisions? How they manage through change and their presence overall, as well as how it relates to how they engage workforce and carry on initiatives.
Execution. [How the] organization carries out its strategic plan and strategic priorities.
Within each of those six categories, we have several questions and performance indicators that we have identified out of best practices to help assess as part of the due diligence.
HL: Why is focusing on human capital during M&A processes important?
Perry: Even from your own study, when we looked at what were the things that caused mergers to fail, the largest one was culture. You can put in place all sorts of financial and governance structures, but ultimately, if you don't have alignment from the organization and commitment around the plan going forward, resistance in the organization will get in the way of that.
I'm not saying that in mergers and acquisitions people don't pay attention to the human capital issues, but they often don't address them early on enough. If you [don't have] alignment upfront, [or know] the impact and how is it going to play out, [then] once people get into it they realize that they came in with different expectations. If you don't start those things earlier on among leadership together, that's where you [find] these challenges.
Related: COVID Effect: Less than 80 Hospital Mergers in 2020
HL: How do you think the pandemic is going to affect M&A activity moving forward, and what are you seeing currently?
Perry: COVID has provided the perfect storm for hospitals; increased costs due the extra requirements to deal with the pandemic, and at the same time, a significant drop in volume of some of their more profitable types of service lines and business. A lot of those profitable services offset some of those services that are less profitable. As a result, hospitals are faced with an incredible drop in volume, revenues, and margin.
That's partly driving M&A for financial stability. Some are what I've seen and anticipate are organizations looking to enhance their size and geographic diversity, because we've known the pandemic has hit different parts of the country at different times and will continue to. Having all your business concentrated in one geography provides a level of risk. I'm seeing some of that desire to be larger, both in terms of diversification but also in terms of size and network expansion, so that they can be more attractive to payers who are putting together networks.
Another driver that I'm seeing from the pandemic is an increase in leveraging telehealth and information technology capabilities, as well as a shift to more outpatient services. For those hospitals and health systems that haven't been as much in the outpatient services areas, you're seeing more partnerships and more acquisitions of outpatient types of services, whether it's ambulatory surgery centers or other kinds of healthcare services and practices.
HL: Do you have any other M&A insights regarding human capital that you'd like to share?
Perry: One of the interesting things that I'm seeing on the merger and acquisition side is that more founders, particularly in medical groups and smaller healthcare companies, have been entrepreneurial and more inclined to sell. Consolidators are out there picking up a lot more organizations and founders are seeing that benefit associated with demand versus supply.
The other thing on the human capital side I've always found fascinating is it's a heavy lift right now for healthcare leaders. It's a hard job, and when you look at the average age of a lot of the leaders running hospitals and health systems, many of them are close to retirement.
What I have always found interesting is that as leaders of larger health systems and organizations are closer to retirement, ego becomes less of a factor. All of a sudden, they're starting to look at acquisitions and leadership, and not worried as much about, 'Will I be the leader of this next organization?' but more looking at the legacy of that organization. I anticipate that you're going to see some leaders looking to sunset their career and that does influence mergers and acquisitions.
Editor's note: This article was updated on January 28.
The two organizations signed a definitive agreement to address health inequities, as well as expand care and education in Michigan.
Henry Ford Health System (HFHS) and Michigan State University (MSU) have signed a definitive agreement, the organizations announced Monday afternoon.
This 30-year partnership expands upon the two organizations' ongoing partnership to focus on healthcare and education access.
Key initiatives for the partnership include increased cancer research and care, with the hope of obtaining National Cancer Institute (NCI) designation within the next five to seven years. MSU will be expanding and creating a campus to train more doctors and nurses in Detroit, all within the existing Henry Ford Campus.
According to a joint press release, diversity, equity, and inclusion are “core components of the partnership and are embedded throughout the agreement in a commitment to addressing access to health care and health disparities in both urban and rural communities."
The agreement comes seven months after the organizations signed a letter of intent for primary affiliation in June. Both organizations will remain independent but there will be co-branding within some of their joint efforts.
During a virtual news briefing, HFHS CEO Wright L. Lassiter III and MSU President Samuel L. Stanley Jr., M.D., spoke about what the partnership will mean for the Great Lake State.
"We know that healthcare means more than just traditional thinking about treating sickness and disease. It's about coming together to address all aspects that contribute to our community's well-being, including removing barriers to opportunity and access," Lassiter said. "For us to have the kind of lasting meaningful impact, we know that our great state of Michigan must become a national leader in scientific discovery, education, and exceptional healthcare, to ensure that no matter who you are or where you live, your health will never limit your potential."
"With this enduring partnership between our two institutions, we aim to align efforts across several key departments and programs, to offer an unprecedented opportunity to integrate education, research, and healthcare," Stanley said. "Most critical is the foundational belief that we can and will advance equity, that every individual deserves accessible, affordable, compassionate quality care, and that together we can play an essential role in delivery."
Additionally, the organizations will be jointly opening a new Health Sciences Center for research and academic activities. Dr. Steven Kalkanis, chief academic officer for HFHS and CEO of Henry Ford Medical Group, will serve as president of the Health Sciences Center. Norman J. Beauchamp Jr., MD, MHS, executive vice president for health sciences for MSU, will serve as chairman of the board.
"[MSU] and [HFHS] are two massive entities that are coming together to make Michigan a national leader in providing access to exceptional healthcare for all residents for scientific discovery and education for providers, patients and families," Garlin Gilchrist, Michigan’s Lieutenant Governor, said during the briefing. "The partnership is built around providing greater access to quality, affordable, compassionate healthcare through shared education, research and clinical integration for urban and rural populations alike. I hope this kind of partnership can be replicated across the state of Michigan."
Nwando Olayiwola, M.D., MPH, FAAFP, will serve in this new role effective April 5.
Humana announced the appointment of a chief health equity officer Monday morning, a newly created role for the organization.
The position was established due to the pandemic putting a spotlight on health disparities and the importance of health equity, according to Humana.
Nwando Olayiwola, M.D., MPH, FAAFP will begin serving as senior vice president and chief health equity officer effective April 5.
She will report to William Shrank, M.D., Humana's chief medical and corporate affairs officer, where she will "set direction and establish strategy to promote health equity across all Humana lines of business, including its care delivery assets," the press release said. She will also focus on cultural sensitivity efforts, and diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI.)
"Dr. Olayiwola is highly regarded as an innovator and expert in harnessing technology to increase access to care for underserved and disenfranchised populations, as well as designing and implementing impactful clinical programs to address the personal needs and challenges people face in achieving their best health,” Shrank said in a statement. “We are fortunate to have her join us to expand and enhance Humana’s work on health equity."
Olayiwola has more than two decades of experience serving in clinical and academic institutions, public health, and health systems redesign. She previously served as chair and professor in the Department of Family and Community Medicine at The Ohio State University (OSU).
She has been recognized for publishing in peer-reviewed medical journals and has received the Martin Luther King, Jr. Leadership Award from UCSF, the Woman of the Year Award from the American Telemedicine Association, the Alumni Achievement Award from the OSU College of Medicine and the Public Health Innovator Award from the Harvard School of Public Health. She also gave a Tedx Talk in October 2020 around health equity.
Olayiwola’s hiring came just over a week before Humana will release its Q4 2020 earnings report.
"Unfortunately, we know there are hidden barriers to health care in our country, and I have always cared deeply about those who – by no fault of their own – have fallen through the cracks in our health care system," Olayiwola said in a statement. "The field of health equity is growing and maturing, and I’m grateful to have the opportunity to concentrate my efforts in this important area, especially for a highly regarded, mission-driven organization like Humana."
Check out some recent DEI leadership appointments at hospitals and health systems across the nation.
Recently, there has been a growing trend in hospitals and health systems appointing leaders to focus on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) efforts across the workforce and patient care.
Larry Griffin, co-founder and partner at Bridge Partners, LLC, a minority-owned executive search firm, shared tips with HealthLeaders earlier this month for DEI recruitment in healthcare. He also underscored the importance of DEI in the workforce and C-suite.
"The healthcare industry [is] no different than other industry. If you don't have diverse leadership, the people that are within the organization, from a career standpoint, look up and they say 'Well, will I have an opportunity to pursue my career goals at this organization if nobody at the top of the organization looks like me?'" Griffin told HealthLeaders.
In light of the growing recognition of the importance of DEI, check out some recent DEI leadership appointments that HealthLeaders has covered.
Angela L. Talton began her role as the first chief DEI officer at City of Hope, a California-based cancer treatment and research organization, on January 11.
Talton now serves as senior vice president and chief DEI officer to "lead the development of a new vision and strategy to advance diversity, equity and inclusion at the independent biomedical research and treatment center," according to a City of Hope press release announcing her hire last week.
The American Hospital Association (AHA) announced two leadership appointments on December 18 to expand the organization's focus on health equity and workforce strategies.
Joy Lewis, who previously served as AHA’s vice president for strategic policy planning, has been promoted to serve as senior vice president for health equity strategies, a newly created role for the association.
Robyn Begley, RN, CEO of the American Organization of Nursing Leadership (AONL) and AHA Chief Nursing Officer, will have expanded duties overseeing the organization's workforce strategies.
Allegheny Health Network (AHN) announced the appointment of Veronica Villalobos, J.D. as vice president of DEI on December 10.
As part of the new role, Villalobos will work alongside with Dr. Margaret Larkins-Pettigrew, who was appointed chief clinical diversity and inclusion officer, effective this month, to "champion DEI efforts," for the Pittsburgh-based academic medical system.
Stonish Pierce, FACHE will serve as the hospital's COO, effective January 25.
Effective Monday, Stonish Pierce, FACHE will begin serving in his new role at the Fort Lauderdale-based hospital.
Pierce has a diverse clinical and leadership background, including working in "acute and ambulatory operations spanning from not-for-profit, public, private, government, academic/teaching and faith-based hospitals to integrated delivery systems and for-profit physical therapy sectors," according to the press release.
Pierce previously served as system vice president of specialty services for Michigan-based Beaumont Health. Prior to that, he served as regional chief operating and business development officer for Presence Health, a Chicago-based health system that joined Ascension in 2018.
"Stonish joins the Holy Cross Health leadership team with more than 22 years of experience in the healthcare industry," Mark Doyle, Holy Cross Health president and CEO, said in a statement. "His people-centered approach and collaborative leadership style in improving healthcare delivery will be an asset to us. He shares our mission, vision and values as we continue to be a compassionate and transforming healing presence within our communities and improve the health of each person we serve."
This is the second new executive to join the Holy Cross C-suite within the year. Doyle joined the non-profit, Catholic teaching hospital last June.