Johnson City, Tenn.-based Ballad Health has made 13 leadership changes, including naming nine physicians to executive roles.
Ballad Health was formed by the merger of Kingsport, Tenn.-based Wellmont Health System and Johnson City-based Mountain States Health Alliance in February 2018.
Eric Deaton will serve as Ballad Health's COO. He previously was executive vice president and COO of Wellmont Health System. He also served as market president for Brentwood, Tenn.-based LifePoint Health. He holds a master's degree in healthcare administration from the University of Cincinnati.
Marvin Eichorn is Ballad Health's new chief administrative officer. He has held senior leadership roles within the health system, including as COO and CFO, and has served on the board of directors of the Tennessee Hospital Association, where he recently completed a term as board chair.
Taylor Hamilton will become Ballad Health's chief consumer officer, a newly created role focused on developing innovative patient interactions and improving patient experience. He holds a master's degree in biotechnology enterprise from Johns Hopkins University.
The physician-focused leadership appointments are:
• Chief physician executive: Clay Runnels, MD, who is an emergency physician and has served in several leadership positions in the health system since 2000.
• Chief clinical officer: Amit Vashist, MD, who is currently chair of the Ballad Health Clinical Council and system chair for the health system's hospitalist division.
• Chief academic officer: Matthew Loos, MD, who has served as CMO of Ballad Health's Washington County (Tenn.) market since 2016.
• System chair of clinical research: Chris Metzger, MD, a practicing interventional cardiologist who was director of Kingsport, Tenn.-based Holston Valley Medical Center's diagnostic catheterization and interventional labs.
• Vice president of medical staff services and hospital-based programs: Mark Wilkinson, MD, who most recently was CMO for Ballad Health's Southeast and Northwest markets.
• CMO for the Northwest Division: Herb Ladley, MD, a former physician leader at Holston Valley Medical Center and system vice president for cardiovascular services for Kingsport-based Wellmont Health System.
• CMO for both campuses of Greeneville (Tenn.) Community Hospital: Daniel Lewis, MD, previous CMO of Takoma Regional Hospital in Greeneville.
• CMO for population health services: Shari Rajoo, MD, who most recently served as assistant vice president and medical director of population health for Ballad Health Medical Associates, an 800-provider medical group.
• President of Ballad Health Medical Associates: Mark Patterson, MD, a general surgeon and prior CMO of Laughlin Medical Group in Greeneville, Tenn.
Ballad Health also created the Ballad Behavioral Health Services Division, naming Trish Baise CEO. Ms. Baise will oversee all inpatient and outpatient services, including Overmountain Recovery, an addiction treatment center in Johnson City. She has previously served as chief nursing officer and later CEO of Franklin Woods Community Hospital and Woodridge Hospital in Johnson City. She is a fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives and is a certified nurse executive through the American Nurses Credentialing Center.