Becker's Hospital Review is pleased to recognize the following 25 men and women who, before reaching the age of 40, have excelled as healthcare leaders. These administrative leaders have made considerable accomplishments early in their professional lives, and they have shown promise to continue succeeding throughout their careers in healthcare.
Note: The following leaders were collected through peer nominations and editorial research. There are no fees involved and no one can pay to be included on this list. Leaders were under 40 years of age at the time of their nomination. They are presented in alphabetical order.
Barry "Skipper" Bondurant. Administrator and CEO of Baptist Memorial Hospital-Union City (Tenn.). Mr. Bondurant, 38, has served as CEO of Baptist Memorial Hospital-Union City since 2012. Prior to his current position, he served as administrator and CEO of Baptist Memorial Hospital-Tipton in Covington, Tenn., a position he took on in 2008. Prior to leading Baptist Memorial Hospital-Tipton, he served as assistant administrator of Baptist Memorial Hospital-Union City.
Tim Bowen. CEO of Mena (Ark.) Regional Health System. Mr. Bowen, 29, has served as CEO of Mena Regional Health System, a 65-bed community hospital, since September 2011. He joined Mena Regional in 2006 as a nuclear medicine technician before becoming an assistant administrator in 2010 and eventually serving as interim CEO prior to taking on the position permanently. Mr. Bowen earned an MBA from John Brown University in Siloam Springs, Ark.
Andre Boyd. COO of TriStar Greenview Regional Hospital (Bowling Green, Ky.). Mr. Boyd, 36, has served as COO of TriStar Greenview Regional Hospital since 2012. In this position, Mr. Boyd is responsible for a roughly $290 million budget. Prior to joining the C-suite at TriStar Greenview, Mr. Boyd served as associate COO of Centerpoint Medical Center in Independence, Mo., a position he held for about two years.
Jim Brown. CEO of Ambulatory Services at Memorial Hermann Health System (Houston). Mr. Brown, 37, has served as the head of Memorial Hermann's ambulatory services since December 2012. In this position, Mr. Brown oversees the system's imaging centers, ambulatory surgery centers, surgical hospitals and physical therapy clinics, among other responsibilities. Prior to taking over Memorial Hermann's ambulatory services, Mr. Brown served as CEO of Memorial Hermann Sugar Land (Texas) Hospital.
Steven Burghart. Senior Vice President and Chief Administrative Officer of Holtz Children's Hospital and Jackson Women's Hospital (Miami). Mr. Burghart, 39, served as COO of Good Samaritan Medical Center in West Palm Beach, Fla., for about two years before becoming chief administrative officer at Holtz Children's Hospital and Jackson Women's Hospital, both part of Jackson Health System in Miami. Mr. Burghart had been with Dallas-based Tenet Healthcare for about eight years before joining Holtz Children's Hospital and Jackson Women's Hospital in April 2012.
Gabrielle Cummings. Senior Vice President of Evanston (Ill.) Hospital. Ms. Cummings started her post-academic career as an administrative fellow at NorthShore University HealthSystem and held leadership positions in several of the system's facilities before becoming senior vice president of the system's Evanston Hospital. She earned a master's degree in healthcare administration from the University of Minnesota's Carlson School of Management in Minneapolis.
Jason Dinger. CEO of MissionPoint Health Partners (Nashville, Tenn.). Mr. Dinger, 38, serves as CEO of MissionPoint Health Partners, a clinically integrated network and Medicare Shared Savings Program accountable care organization founded by Nashville-based St. Thomas Health. Under Mr. Dinger's leadership, MissionPoint has experienced more than 12 percent savings in cost and has added Franklin, Tenn.-based Capella Healthcare's four Tennessee hospitals to the network.
Ben Dunford. CFO of Texas Regional Medical Center at Sunnyvale. Mr. Dunford, 36, has served as CFO of Texas Regional Medical Center since August 2011. During that time, he has improved the run-rate profitability of the 70-bed facility by 200 percent. He has also significantly reduced the hospital's overall costs. Prior to joining TRMC at Sunnyvale, he was a senior leader in Bain & Co.'s Performance Improvement Practice in Dallas. He has also served as an associate at Goldman Sachs in Dallas.
J. Eric Evans. CEO of Sierra Providence Health Network (El Paso, Texas). Mr. Evans has served as CEO of Sierra Providence Health Network since September 2012. Sierra Providence Health Network is comprised of Providence Memorial Hospital, Providence Children's Hospital and Sierra Medical Center. He previously served as CEO of Lake Pointe Health Network in Rowlett, Texas, a position he began in 2010 when he was 32 years old. Before accepting this position, Mr. Evans had been with Lake Pointe Health Network since 2004.
Gabrielle Finley-Hazle. CEO of North Shore Medical Center FMC Campus (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.). Ms. Finley-Hazle, 35, has served as CEO of North Shore Medical Center FMC Campus since September 2012. She joined the organization in 2010 and previously served as COO. In that role, Ms. Finley-Hazle oversaw the completion of a hybrid operating room and special procedures bi-plane room. Ms. Finley-Hazle is the 2013 chair for the American Heart Association's Go Red for Women campaign in Ft. Lauderdale and Miami Dade.
Christina Freese-Decker. President of Spectrum Health United Hospital (Greenville, Mich.) and Spectrum Health Kelsey Hospital (Lakeview, Mich.). Ms. Freese-Decker, 35, has been with Spectrum Health since 2002, serving in various leadership roles before becoming president of United and Kelsey hospitals in 2011. During her time at the helm, United Hospital was named as one of Truven Health Analytics' "100 Top Hospitals" in 2013. Ms. Freese-Decker earned a master's degree in health administration and industrial engineering from the University of Iowa in Iowa City.
Tom Jackson. CFO of Parkridge Health System (Chattanooga, Tenn.). Mr. Jackson, 33, has served as CFO of Parkridge Health System since February 2013. The system is comprised of Parkridge Medical Center, Parkridge East Hospital and Parkridge Valley Hospital. Mr. Jackson previously served as CFO of Emory Eastside Medical Center in Snellville, Ga. He has more than 14 years of financial management experience.
Christopher Jones, MBA. Director of Strategy and Business Development for Catholic Health Initiatives' Fargo (N.D.) Division. Mr. Jones, 38, has served as the director of strategy and business for Catholic Health Initiatives' Fargo division, which includes 12 hospitals and other facilities in Minnesota, North Dakota and Wisconsin, since 2007. He joined CHI in 2001. In addition to his experience with CHI, Mr. Jones oversaw the creation of a business intelligence environment at Allina Hospitals and Clinics in Minneapolis in 2006. He earned his MBA with a concentration in finance from the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul, Minn.
Kevin Joseph, MD. President and CEO of West Chester (Ohio) Hospital. Dr. Joseph serves as president and CEO of West Chester Hospital and also is an assistant professor at the University of Cincinnati Department of Medicine. He previously served as the medical director of the WCH Emergency Department.
Brett Lee, PhD. CEO of Lake Pointe Health Network (Rowlett, Texas). Dr. Lee, 38, has served as CEO of Lake Pointe Health Network since November 2012. As CEO, Dr. Lee oversees strategic, operational and clinical activities for the network, which his made up of a 112-bed hospital and nine outpatient centers. Prior to joining Lake Pointe Health Network, Dr. Lee was senior vice president of clinical operations at Children's Healthcare of Atlanta. He earned a doctorate in allied health and physical therapy at Massachusetts General Hospital's Institute of Health Sciences in Boston.
Shauna McKinnon, MBA. CEO of Pasco Regional Medical Center (Dade City, Fla.). Ms. McKinnon became CEO of Pasco Regional Medical Center in March 2013. She joined Naples, Fla.-based Health Management Associates, which owns Pasco Regional, in 2004. Ms. McKinnon earned her MBA from Baker College in Flint, Mich.
Sandee Moore. COO of Eastern Idaho Regional Medical Center (Idaho Falls). Ms. Moore, 31, has served as the COO of Eastern Idaho Regional Medical Center since she was 29. Prior to joining the 330-bed facility, Ms. Moore served as associate administrator of Sunrise Hospital in Las Vegas. She has led the charge at Eastern Idaho Regional Medical Center to achieve primary stroke center designation, among many other accomplishments. Ms. Moore is also serving as the 2012-2015 Idaho Regent for the American College of Healthcare Executives.
David Ottati. President and CEO of Florida Hospital Flagler (Palm Coast, Fla.). As president and CEO of Florida Hospital Flagler, Mr. Ottati, 39, oversees all aspects of the hospital's operations, including Florida Hospital HospiceCare and Florida Hospital Home Health. He has been with the Florida Hospital system for more than 14 years. Mr. Ottati earned a MBA from the University of Central Florida in Orlando.
Adar Palis. Executive Vice President and COO of Harrison Medical Center (Bremerton, Wash.). Mr. Palis, 34, joined Harrison Medical Center in 2002 as a network engineer and was promoted to chief information officer in 2005, when he was 27. During his time at Harrison Medical Center, Mr. Palis has helped oversee the hospital's drive to implement an electronic medical record. He has earned Lean Six Sigma Black Belt certification.
Carrie O. Plietz. CEO of Sutter Medical Center (Sacramento, Calif.). Ms. Plietz has led Sutter Medical Center since September 2011. Prior to joining the medical center, Ms. Plietz was COO of Mills-Peninsula Health Service, a Sutter Health affiliate in San Matteo, Calif. She has also previously served as chief administrative officer of San Francisco-based California Pacific Medical Center's Pacific campus and vice president of operations for specialty services.
Sanjay Shetty, MD, MBA. Vice President of Radiology for Steward Health Care System (Boston) and Department of Radiology Chairman at St. Elizabeth's Medical Center (Brighton, Mass.). Dr. Shetty, 39, earned his medical degree from Harvard Medical School and his MBA from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. He joined St. Elizabeth's as the chairman of radiology in 2010. In addition to his roles with Steward, Dr. Shetty has also served as president of the Massachusetts Radiological Society.
Amanda Trask. Vice President of Professional and Support Services, WellStar Kennestone Hospital (Marietta, Ga.). As the vice president of professional and support services at WellStar Kennestone Hospital, Ms. Trask, 38, oversees a team of more than 750 people. Due in part to Ms. Trask's leadership, the hospital has developed many clinical and non-clinical programs, including constructing a new Women's Imaging Center. She is a fellow in the American College of Healthcare Executives and active in the Georgia Association of Healthcare Executives, Medical Group Management Association, Healthcare Financial Management Association and the Society of Hospital Medicine.
Nathan Tudor. CEO of Beauregard Memorial Hospital (DeRidder, La.). Mr. Tudor, 33, has served as CEO of Beauregard Memorial Hospital since December 2012. He previously served as administrator and CEO of Otto Kaiser Memorial Hospital in Kenney, Texas, a position he held for about two years. Prior to that, he worked with various hospitals in Texas, Arkansas and Tennessee.
Katherine Vergos, RN. COO of Ripon (Wis.) Medical Center. Ms. Vergos has been COO of Ripon Medical Center since June 2011. Prior to becoming COO, Ms. Vergos served as the hospital's vice president of patient services. In that position, she helped facilitate the affiliation between Ripon Medical Center and Fond du Lac, Wis.-based Agnesian HealthCare. She also served as a naval officer and registered nurse at the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, Md., from 1999 through 2002.
Phil A. Wright. CEO of Southampton Memorial Hospital (Franklin, Va.). Mr. Wright, 37, has served as CEO of 221-bed Southampton Memorial Hospital since November 2010. He previously served as assistant CEO of Southside Regional Medical Center in Petersburg, Va., a position he held since 2007.