Duluth, Minn.-based Essentia Health has appointed Gratia Pitcher, MD, as chief medical officer after serving in an interim capacity since October.
Dr. Pitcher, who has been with the health system since 2015, previously served as chief quality and patient safety officer. In this role, she helped Essentia improve its state and national quality ratings, according to a Dec. 18 news release. Essentia tied for the top spot in the most recent Minnesota Health Care Quality Report from Minnesota Community Measurement, scoring above statewide averages on 13 of 21 clinical-quality measures.
In May, Dr. Pitcher expects to earn her master's degree in business administration from the University of Wisconsin in Madison.
"Dr. Pitcher has consistently demonstrated her ability to gain the perspectives and trust of her colleagues to advance the care of the patients we are privileged to serve," Essentia CEO David Herman, MD, said. "She is the right clinical leader during this time of tremendous change in healthcare, and we are proud to have her in this important leadership role."