Executive News

ACHE Member Update

Ethics Committee Update

ACHE’s Ethics Committee is responsible for reviewing member grievances and recommending actions to the Board of Governors on allegations regarding Code of Ethics violations. During the 2024–2025 committee year, the Ethics Committee did not need to consider any issues involving ACHE members.

The Ethics Committee is also responsible for conducting annual evaluations of ACHE’s Code of Ethics and Grievance Procedure and recommending updates.

Ethics Committee members are ACHE Fellows who are appointed by the Board of Governors; they serve confidentially, with the exception of the committee chair, whose name is made public. The Code of Ethics, Ethical Policy Statements and other ethics resources are available at ache.org/Ethics. The Ethics Self-Assessment, a tool to help members evaluate their ethics-related leadership and actions and address potential red flags, can be found at ache.org/EthicsSelfAssessment.

People

American Hospital Association Recognizes ACHE Members

During the AHA’s 2025 Annual Membership Meeting in May, two members of the American College of Healthcare Executives were among those who received awards for their service to the healthcare field and for innovative approaches to providing care.

Board of Trustees Awards
Phyllis Cowling, former president and CEO of United Regional Health Care System, Wichita Falls, Texas, and Ron Werft, LFACHE, former president and CEO and now president emeritus of Cottage Health in Santa Barbara, Calif., received AHA’s 2025 Board of Trustees Award. The award is presented to individuals or groups who have made substantial and noteworthy contributions to the work of the AHA on behalf of the hospital field.

Member-Led Organizations Receive Gallup Exceptional Workplace Award

Four ACHE member-led organizations received the 2025 Gallup Exceptional Workplace Award, which recognizes employee engagement. They are:

• Children’s Health of Texas, Dallas, led by Christopher J. Durovich, FACHE, president/CEO (four-time winner).
• Exact Sciences Corp., Madison, Wis., led by Kevin Conroy, president and CEO (two-time winner).
• Hendrick Health, Abilene, Texas, led by Brad D. Holland, FACHE, president/CEO (18-time winner).
• Sarasota (Fla.) Memorial Health Care System, led by David Verinder, president/CEO (four-time winner).

A total of 70 organizations in a variety of industries received the award.

To promote the many benefits of ACHE membership, the following ACHE leader spoke recently at the following events:

Leaders in Action

Michele K. Sutton, FACHE
2025-2026 Chair
American Hospital Association Annual Membership Meeting
ACHE Breakfast Meeting
May 5, 2025

ACHE-New Jersey
C-Suite Roundtable
March 4, 2025

ACHE Staff News

Postgraduate Fellow and Diversity Intern Announced

Lynard V. Gardner Jr. has been selected as the 2025–2026 Stuart A. Westbury Jr. Postgraduate Fellow. Gardner graduated in 2025 with a master’s degree in health administration from the Medical University of South Carolina. He has worked most recently as a patient care technician at MUSC in Charleston, S.C. ACHE established this fellowship in 1991 to further postgraduate education in healthcare and professional society management.

Arthur T. Edwards has been selected as the ACHE Diversity Intern through the Institute for Diversity and Health Equity’s Summer Enrichment Program. Edwards is pursuing a master’s degree in health services administration from Xavier University, Cincinnati.

Both the yearlong fellowship and the three-month internship offer exposure to a broad range of association management issues through interactions with senior-level executives and rotations through each of ACHE’s departments.