Executive News

 

ACHE Member Update

ACHE Recognizes 2022 Joint Federal Sector Award Recipients 
This year, ACHE had the privilege of recognizing three individuals with the following awards, established to recognize healthcare management excellence in the federal sector:  

Mark J. Stevenson, FACHE, chief operations, Program Management Office, Defense Health Agency, Aurora, Colo., received the 2022 Federal Excellence in Healthcare Leadership Award, which recognizes a federal civilian or uniformed ACHE Fellow who has made significant contributions to ACHE and the profession of healthcare administration. The Federal Excellence in Healthcare Leadership Award is sponsored by retired Brig Gen Donald B. Wagner, LFACHE, former Deputy Surgeon General for Operations and chief of the Air Force Medical Service Corps. 

Sarah K. Poulos, FACHE, Veterans Integrated Service Network 5 chief business officer, VA Capitol Health Care Network, Linthicum, Md., received the 2022 Federal Excellence in Healthcare Management Award, which recognizes one nonuniformed federal civilian ACHE member at the grade of GS-14 or below who developed and led innovative practices in healthcare management. 

LCDR Temitope O. Ayeni, FACHE, executive assistant, Office of the Chief of Naval Operations, Washington, D.C., received the 2022 Military Excellence in Healthcare Management Award, which recognizes one uniformed ACHE member who developed and led innovative practices in healthcare management. 

These three individuals received their awards March 31 during the Joint Federal Sector Breakfast and Awards Ceremony, held immediately after the 2022 Congress on Healthcare Leadership in Chicago, March 28–30. 

2022 Scholars Selected for Executive Diversity and Career Accelerator Programs 
Thirty-seven scholars have been selected for the 2022 Thomas C. Dolan Executive Diversity (12) and Career Accelerator Programs (25). Nearly 180 high-caliber executives applied for these prestigious national programs, which provide education, mentoring and networking experiences to prepare diverse leaders for higher-level positions in hospitals, health systems and other healthcare organizations.

The Executive Diversity Program has offered specialized leadership development for diverse leaders since it was established in 2014 by the Foundation of ACHE’s Fund for Healthcare Leadership to honor Thomas C. Dolan, PhD, FACHE, who served as president/CEO of ACHE from 1991 to 2013. The program honors his long-standing service to the profession of healthcare leadership and furthers his strong commitment to achieving greater diversity among senior healthcare leaders. In 2021, the offerings were expanded to include the Career Accelerator Program, designed for diverse midcareerists to support their career advancement. 

The scholars and their respective organizations are: 

Executive Diversity Program
Stacey Ann-Okoth, DNP, RN, NEA-BC, CNO, Jefferson Health-Abington (Pa.) Division. 

Juana Hutchinson-Colas, MD, associate professor/chief, Division of Female Pelvic Medicine and Reconstructive Surgery, Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, New Brunswick, N.J. 

Megha Kachalia, FACHE, assistant vice president, Physician and Ambulatory Planning, MedStar Health, Washington, D.C./Baltimore. 

Pranav C. Mehta, MD, FACHE, CMO/vice president, Clinical Operations, HCA Healthcare Group, Nashville, Tenn. 

Kristan M. Murray, FACHE, associate director, VA Southern Nevada Healthcare System, North Las Vegas. 

Sonney Sapra, CIO, Samaritan Health Services, Corvallis, Ore. 

Sanjit Sodhi, CFO/interim COO, Kaiser Permanente-Napa/Solano, Oakland, Calif. 

Marilyn A. Swindle, DNP, RN, CPHQ, associate vice president, Clinical Effectiveness, Memorial Hermann Health System, Houston. 

Amanda S. Tufano, FACHE, CEO, Genevive, Minneapolis. 

Alen Voskanian, MD, medical director, Cedars-Sinai Medical Group, Los Angeles. 

Dorian L. Williams, FACHE, assistant vice president, Operations, West Virginia University Medicine, Morgantown, W.Va. 

Robin Womeodu, MD, senior vice president/chief academic officer, Methodist Healthcare, Memphis, Tenn. 

Career Accelerator Program 
Veronica Angel, director, Evolve Psychiatry Treatment Centers, El Segundo, Calif. 

Ardith C. Barrow, FACHE, director, Strategic Consulting, Wellstar Health System, Alpharetta, Ga.
 
Gabrielle L. Besler, clinical operations director, Department of Otolaryngology/Head and Neck Surgery, UC Health, Cincinnati. 

Frantz M. Berthaud, marketing director, Oncology Services, The Hospitals of Providence, El Paso, Texas. 

Timothy L. Brown, DHA, director, People and Culture, WorkReduce Inc., Charlotte, N.C. 

Pedro “Paco” C. Castellon, director, Research, Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center, Miami. 

Ahn Thang Dao-Shah, PhD, executive director, Belonging and Equity, John Muir Health, Walnut Creek, Calif. 

Bri Dinoso, director, Clinical Innovation, Kaiser Permanente, Castro Valley, Calif. 

Nwando U. Eze, MD, regional medical director, Neonatology, The Permanente Medical Group Northern California, Granite Bay, Calif. 

Frankie N. Hamilton, CPHQ, NEA-BC, deputy CNO, New York City Health and Hospital Corporation of Lincoln Hospital, New York. 

Jason Hart, FACHE, senior director, Multispecialty Clinics, Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium, Anchorage, Alaska.

Steven Hunter, DMSc, director, Advanced Practice Professionals, Baylor Scott & White, The Heart Hospitals, Plano, Texas. 

Lawrence D. King, nursing home administrator, Twin Oaks Rehabilitation & HealthCare Center, Mobile, Ala. 

Mark Liu, director, Strategic Initiatives for Oncology, Mount Sinai Health System, New York. 

Jemichael Manora, chief of safety/emergency management service, Central Alabama Veterans Health Care System, Montgomery, Ala. 

Salman Moti, DHA, director, Health System Quality Operations-Analytics, UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas. 

Paul S. Persaud, executive director, Patient Experience, Landmark Health, Lindenhurst, N.Y. 

Lakshmi Seshadri, MD, medical director, Utilization Management, Aetna CVS Health, Sugar Land, Texas. 

Alexandra Simonton, director, Strategy, IU Health, Carmel, Ind. 

Lena Simpson, assistant chief, HIMS, West Palm Beach VA Medical Center, Hialeah, Fla. 

Raman Singh, RN, FACHE, CPHQ, director, Operations, Adventist Health, Handford, Calif. 

Cassandra Stephenson, administrator, Medical Services, Princeton (N.J.) University. 

Jocelyn Thomas, regional manager, Infection Prevention, Memorial Hermann Health System, Houston. 

Cyrilyn A. Walters, MD, medical director, Ambulatory Services, Regional One Health/UT Health Science Center, Memphis, Tenn. 

Marisa Williams, senior manager, Atrium Health, Charlotte, N.C. 

In 2022, the Executive Diversity Program will consist of e-learning, including live and recorded webinars, self-study materials and three multiday, in-person sessions. The Career Accelerator Program is exclusively virtual. Dolan scholars are empowered through a structured curriculum and activities that cultivate strong leadership presence; sharpen expertise in diversity, equity and inclusion; build critical leadership skills; and expand one’s capacity to navigate career opportunities and challenges. Both programs are six months in duration.  

Both the Executive Diversity Program and the Career Accelerator Program are wholly funded by the Fund for Healthcare Leadership. Visit ache.org/DiversityPrograms to learn more about the 2022 scholars and the Executive Diversity and Career Accelerator Programs.

Leaders in Action

To promote the many benefits of ACHE membership, the following ACHE leaders spoke recently at the following in-person events: 

Anthony A. Armada, FACHE 
Chair
ACHE Annual State Membership Meeting and Breakfast 
Michigan Health & Hospital Association Annual Membership Meeting
(June 2022)

Career Positioning—Proactively Managing Your Professional Development
ACHE—North Florida Chapter
(July 2022)

Delvecchio S. Finley, FACHE
Chair-Elect
ACHE Breakfast
Ohio Hospital Association Annual Meeting & Education Summit 
(June 2022)

ACHE Staff News

ACHE Announces New Hires, Promotions and a Retirement 
Following are new hire, promotion and retirement announcements. 

Shannon N. Barnet promoted to manager, Product Marketing, Department of Marketing, from content marketing specialist.

La’Toya Carter welcomed as content acquisitions manager, Department of Learning/Health Administration Press.

Cristina Cuevas promoted to senior customer service representative, Customer Service Center, Department of Executive Engagement, from customer service representative. 

Marina Garcia promoted to accounting specialist, Finance & Accounting, Department of Business Excellence, from accounting coordinator. 

Kevin D. McLenithan welcomed as project editor, Department of Learning/Health Administration Press.

Julie A. Nolan retired from director, Executive Office and Governance, in July after 38 years of service. Julie joined ACHE in 1984 as an accounting/order-entry clerk. She went on to be promoted to administrative secretary (1985), administrative assistant (1986), administrative assistant II (1988), special assistant to the president (1991), executive assistant to the president (1993), governance manager (2012) and, in 2014, her final role as director, Executive Office and Governance. During her tenure with ACHE, Julie served many staff, three ACHE presidents (Stuart A. Wesbury Jr., PhD, LFACHE; Thomas C. Dolan, PhD, FACHE; and Deborah J. Bowen, FACHE, CAE), 46 ACHE Chairs and countless volunteers. She has navigated an infinite number of committee assignments, requests, advancements in process and policy at the Board of Governors level, and recruited staff. Most importantly, Julie came to be known as the heart of ACHE. We would like to thank Julie for her many years of service to the organization and the healthcare field.

Lisa M. Redmond welcomed as customer service representative, Customer Service Center, Department of Executive Engagement. 

Sujatha Socrates welcomed as web content coordinator, Department of Marketing. 

Sylvia Vargas welcomed as meeting planner, Department of Professional Development. 

Deneen Y. Wakefield promoted to senior customer service representative, Customer Service Center, Department of Executive Engagement, from customer service representative. 

Nana Yaa A. Yiadom welcomed as customer service representative, Customer Service Center, Department of Executive Engagement.

Intern Announced 
Morgan E. Krizan has been selected as the ACHE Diversity Intern through the Institute for Diversity and Health Equity’s Summer Enrichment Program. Krizan is pursuing an MBA from Concordia University, St. Paul, N.D. She expects to graduate in August 2023. 

The three-month internship offers exposure to a broad range of association management issues. The intern interacts with senior-level executives and rotates through each of ACHE’s departments. The internship was established in 1991 to further postgraduate education in healthcare and professional society management.