Healthleaderforge

Today’s guest is Betsey Rhynhart, the Executive Director of New Hampshire Accountable Care Partners, an Accountable Care Organization or ACO headquartered at Concord Hospital in Concord New Hampshire. New Hampshire Accountable Care Partners was formed as a partnership between four community health systems in Southern New Hampshire: Concord Hospital, The Elliot Health System, Southern New Hampshire Health System, and Wentworth-Douglas Health System. In this podcast Betsey talks about her career, and how her education in public health and her background in insurance and strategy merge in her current role leading the ACO’s efforts. She talks about how the ACO is a learning organization that is helping the participating partners move toward a strategy of providing value-based care, a recurring theme we have been hearing from a number of leaders in recent interviews. Betsey provides an inside view of how the ACO was formed, how it operates, what the organization’s goals and objectives are, and what the participati

Today's guest is Dr. Michael Sherman, the Chief Medical Officer and Senior Vice President for Health Services at Harvard Pilgrim Health Care. Harvard Pilgrim is a New England-based regional health plan with 1.25 million members. It has been ranked #1 by NCQA for the past ten years. Michael holds Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees from the University of Pennsylvania in Medical Anthropology, he attended Yale Medical School, and is a board certified anesthesiologist. In the mid-1990's he made the decision to pursue an MBA at Harvard Business School with the thought that he would seek to blend together his clinical expertise with a business education, but he was sure of one thing: that he would never work for an insurance plan. In this podcast he tells the story of his career, about becoming a physician, making the transition to executive leadership, and how he ultimately worked for three health insurers (ironically, the payers he said he would not work for). Michael's career involves a great deal of serendipity, bu

Today's guest is Dr. Michael Sherman, the Chief Medical Officer and Senior Vice President for Health Services at Harvard Pilgrim Health Care. Harvard Pilgrim is a New England-based regional health plan with 1.25 million members. It has been ranked #1 by NCQA for the past ten years. Michael holds Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees from the University of Pennsylvania in Medical Anthropology, he attended Yale Medical School, and is a board certified anesthesiologist. In the mid-1990's he made the decision to pursue an MBA at Harvard Business School with the thought that he would seek to blend together his clinical expertise with a business education, but he was sure of one thing: that he would never work for an insurance plan. In this podcast he tells the story of his career, about becoming a physician, making the transition to executive leadership, and how he ultimately worked for three health insurers (ironically, the payers he said he would not work for). Michael's career involves a great deal of serendipity, bu

Are you a leader? How much do you trust your subordinates? Enough to let them strap you to a litter and let them lower you on a rope over the side of a 30 story sky scraper? Daniel Andrus, the Fire Chief for the City of Concord, New Hampshire, let his subordinates do exactly that. In today’s podcast, Dan tells the story of his 37 year career as a firefighter. Dan has a long list of credentials including master’s degrees in public administration and economics. He is, as he puts it, a continual learner. In addition to his role as fire chief, he serves on the boards of a number of non-profit organizations. This was one of the most educational podcasts for me that I have done so far because I knew very little about the organization and operations of the fire service. The fire service is a critical community resource that every health care executive should have an understanding of, so I was very pleased Dan took the time to share his story and I hope it is useful to health care executives as they think about emerg

Are you a leader? How much do you trust your subordinates? Enough to let them strap you to a litter and let them lower you on a rope over the side of a 30 story sky scraper? Daniel Andrus, the Fire Chief for the City of Concord, New Hampshire, let his subordinates do exactly that. In today’s podcast, Dan tells the story of his 37 year career as a firefighter. Dan has a long list of credentials including master’s degrees in public administration and economics. He is, as he puts it, a continual learner. In addition to his role as fire chief, he serves on the boards of a number of non-profit organizations. This was one of the most educational podcasts for me that I have done so far because I knew very little about the organization and operations of the fire service. The fire service is a critical community resource that every health care executive should have an understanding of, so I was very pleased Dan took the time to share his story and I hope it is useful to health care executives as they think about emerg

Today’s guest is Jill Gravink, the Founder and Executive Director of Northeast Passage. Jill founded Northeast Passage in 1990 as a means of bringing Recreational Therapy out of the inpatient setting and into the community. Northeast Passage works with people who have physical and mental disabilities, using sport and leisure activities to improve the quality of the client’s life and to, as they say at Northeast Passage, “Live beyond disability.” Northeast Passage works with everyone from children to combat veterans, treating more than 3,000 clients last year. In this podcast Jill tells the story of how Northeast Passage came to be, and what it took to grow the organization from just her operating out of the trunk of her car to where it is today. We also discuss how organizations like Northeast Passage are well poised to contribute to the future of health care as the industry shifts to outcomes and value-based reimbursement, and conclude with a discussion about leadership. This is a public episode. If you woul

Today’s guest is Greg Townsend, the Vice President of Business Intelligence and Analytics at Commonwealth Care Alliance in Boston. Greg’s path to leadership in health analytics traces the coming of age of analytics in health care. Greg’s educational background began in public health working with disease management and health promotion, which led him to roles in risk management and quality improvement, two fields that rely heavily on data. These early roles helped him develop the skill set that he uses today to support the Commonwealth Care Alliance’s mission of providing health care to some of Massachusetts’ most needy citizens. The podcast concludes with Greg’s thoughts on leadership and his advice to people who are interested in entering the field of health analytics. You are listening to the extended version of the podcast. An abridged version of the interview that focuses only on Greg’s work at Commonwealth Care Alliance is also available. Please see our web site for the link to that version of the interv

Today’s guest is Greg Townsend, the Vice President of Business Intelligence and Analytics at Commonwealth Care Alliance in Boston. Greg’s path to leadership in health analytics traces the coming of age of analytics in health care. Greg’s educational background began in public health working with disease management and health promotion, which led him to roles in risk management and quality improvement, two fields that rely heavily on data. These early roles helped him develop the skill set that he uses today to support the Commonwealth Care Alliance’s mission of providing health care to some of Massachusetts’ most needy citizens. The podcast concludes with Greg’s thoughts on leadership and his advice to people who are interested in entering the field of health analytics. You are listening to the abridged version of the podcast that focuses only on Greg’s work at Commonwealth Care Alliance. An extended version of the podcast is also available. The extended version includes a discussion of Greg’s career trajecto

Today’s guest is Robert Mach, the Executive Director of Operations for Littleton Regional Healthcare, and the New Hampshire Regent for the American College of Healthcare Executives. Robert has had a fascinating career starting out as an air traffic controller for the US Marine Corps, then transitioning to health care initially as a radiology technician, and working his way up into the executive ranks by, as he puts it, “putting his hand up.” In the podcast, Robert talks about his career, then shares some thoughts about his role as Regent and why ACHE is an important organization for an early careerist to consider becoming a member of. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit healthleaderforge.substack.com

For today’s interview I return to the Manchester Health Department to talk with Phil Alexakos, the Chief of Environmental Health and Emergency Preparedness Division, about how he and his department plan and prepare for public health crises. As we remembered the 14th anniversary of the tragic events of September 11th, 2001 just a few days ago, Phil’s division’s focus has expanded from naturally occurring public health threats like pandemic flu to responding to bioterrorism. The interview is fascinating because Phil and his colleagues focus on developing capabilities to respond to a wide array of unknown and unknowable events by finding ways to repurpose existing infrastructure in diverse ways. The podcast concludes with how government organizations like the Health Department cannot do this mission alone – they need the help of an army of volunteers. While Phil talks about some of the volunteer programs specific to New Hampshire, listeners should consider what opportunities they have to help make their communit

Today’s guest is Bridget Stewart, the Vice President for Physician Services at the Elliot Health System in Manchester, New Hamsphire. Bridget’s career spans a wide variety of hospitals and clinical activities, but always focused on operations management. She has worked at several world famous Boston hospitals such as Brigham and Women’s, Boston Children’s and most recently before coming to the Elliot, as the Vice President for Operations at the Joslin Diabetes Clinic. In addition to earning her Bachelor’s degree from Health Management and Policy here at the University of New Hampshire, she holds an MBA and a Doctor of Law and Policy. In this podcast she talks about her career journey and some of the differences between the organizations she has worked for, and concludes with advice to early careerists. This full-length podcast is approximately 84 minutes in length – an abridged version of the podcast is available that only focuses on her roles at Joslin and the Elliot. This is a public episode. If you would l

Today’s guest is Bridget Stewart, the Vice President for Physician Services at the Elliot Health System in Manchester, New Hamsphire. Bridget’s career spans a wide variety of hospitals and clinical activities, but always focused on operations management. She has worked at several world famous Boston hospitals such as Brigham and Women’s, Boston Children’s and most recently before coming to the Elliot, as the Vice President for Operations at the Joslin Diabetes Clinic. This is the abridged version of the podcast, and in this abridged version we talk about her two most recent roles – at Joslin and the Elliot. The full length podcast is also available and in that podcast you will hear her talk about her discuss her full career journey, as well as advice for early careerists. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit healthleaderforge.substack.com

Today’s interview is with Jay Couture, the Executive Director and CEO of the Seacoast Mental Health Center, a non-profit community mental health center in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Jay received master’s degree from the Department of Health Management and Policy here at UNH. Jay knew early on that she wanted to work in mental health, but thought she would be a provider. In this podcast we talk about Jay’s thirty years in the mental health industry working her way up from being a clerk to CEO, and her more than twenty years at Seacoast Mental Health. We also discuss the variety of services provided by a community mental health center, the wide variety of skill sets that are required to deliver those services, the challenges and opportunities facing mental health organizations today, and conclude with a discussion of opportunities for the early careerist who might be interested in pursuing a career in mental health. The full length podcast is approximately 78 minutes. An abridged version is also available that

Today’s interview is with Jay Couture, the Executive Director and CEO of the Seacoast Mental Health Center, a non-profit community mental health center in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Jay received master’s degree from the Department of Health Management and Policy here at UNH. Jay knew early on that she wanted to work in mental health, but thought she would be a provider. This is the abridged version of my interview with Jay. In the abridged version you will hear Jay describe Seacoast’s service structure and the challenges of delivering mental health care. The podcast is approximately 40 minutes in length. The full length version of the podcast explores the career path Jay took to becoming the CEO of Seacoast, as well as more detail about Seacoast and mental health service delivery, and Jay’s thoughts on leadership. The full length podcast is approximately 79 minutes. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit healthleaderforge.subst

Today’s interview is with Tricia Cummings, the Administrator of The Edgewood Centre, a 150 bed family owned nursing home in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Tricia received both her bachelor’s and master’s degrees from the Department of Health Management and Policy here at UNH. Tricia’s career story shows how early job experiences often generate skills that become critical later in one’s career, and that working hard every step of the way has its payoffs. In this podcast we talk about the road Tricia took to find her true passion – taking care of older adults. We also discuss how someone becomes a licensed nursing home administrator, the services offered by long term care facilities, the challenges and opportunities facing long term care today, and conclude with a discussion of opportunities for the early careerist who might be interested in pursuing a career in long term care. The full length podcast is approximately 83 minutes, which is a bit longer than our usual podcast. However, an abridged version is also ava

Today’s interview is with Stephen Norton, the Director of the New Hampshire Center for Public Policy Studies, a non-profit policy think tank that provides non-partisan analysis to decision makers in New Hampshire in both the public and private sectors. In this podcast Steve gives us a unique insider view into how the Center produces its analysis so that it is evidence based and as non-ideological as possible. Steve also shares his 25 years of experience working in public policy, both at the state and federal level, and concludes with recommendations for early careerists who might be interested in a career in health policy. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit healthleaderforge.substack.com

Today's interview is with Major General Jimmie O. Keenan, the Deputy Commanding General-Operations for the U.S. Army Medical Command, and the Chief of the Army Nurse Corps. To put Major General Keenan's accomplishments into perspective for listeners who are not familiar with the the military, the Army has approximately 492,000 active duty personnel, and only 309 general officers. Furthermore, Major General Keenan is one of only eight female major generals. In this podcast we discuss her fascinating career which ranges from time as a floor nurse to writing legislation as a congressional fellow to being second in command of one of the largest and most unusual health care systems in the United States. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit healthleaderforge.substack.com

Today’s guest is Edgar J. Helms, Jr, better known as Ned to his friends and colleagues here at the University of New Hampshire, where he has served as the Director of the Institute for Health Policy and Practice since 2001. Ned has had a remarkable career that has spanned leadership roles in the military, as well as state, and federal governments; and in both for profit and not for profit entities, to include starting his own consulting firm. By the time this podcast airs, Ned will have retired from his role with the Institute, however his influence will be felt in New Hampshire and beyond for many years. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit healthleaderforge.substack.com

Today’s guest is Kevin Callahan, the CEO of Exeter Health Resources in Exeter New Hampshire. Kevin has been the CEO of Exeter Health Resources for nearly 30 years. His tenure spans many of the healthcare industry’s most tumultuous changes. Kevin describes himself as a person who thrives on the challenge of change, and in this interview he talks about how he has kept the organization adaptable. The original interview with Kevin is 90 minutes in length. I have produced an abridged, 45 minute version as well as the 90 minute version. Both the abridged and the unabridged versions are available here. You are listening to the abridged version of the interview. Check the track list for the unabridged version. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit healthleaderforge.substack.com

Today’s guest is Kevin Callahan, the CEO of Exeter Health Resources in Exeter New Hampshire. Kevin has been the CEO of Exeter Health Resources for nearly 30 years. His tenure spans many of the healthcare industry’s most tumultuous changes. Kevin describes himself as a person who thrives on the challenge of change, and in this interview he talks about how he has kept the organization adaptable. The original interview with Kevin is 90 minutes in length. I have produced an abridged, 45 minute version as well as the 90 minute version. Both the abridged and the unabridged versions are available here. You are listening to the unabridged version of the interview. If you wish to listen to the other version of the interview, please check the track list. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit healthleaderforge.substack.com