Becker's Healthcare is pleased to honor the most impactful chief experience officers for hospitals and health systems across the U.S. for 2022.
Chief experience officers are tasked with elevating the patient journey and advocating for a respectful approach to patient care. They are accountable for ensuring equitable care and cultural transformation among clinicians and staff.
The best CXOs are obsessed with delivering truly patient-centered care and focused on breaking down organizational barriers to a seamless, stress-free patient and caregiver experience.
Contact Randi Haseman at rhaseman@beckershealthcare.com to recommend a leader for this list. To learn more about the information industry and engage in lively debate about the future, join us at Becker's 7th Annual Health IT and Revenue Cycle Management Conference in October - register here.
Note: This list is not an endorsement of included executives, hospitals, health systems or associated healthcare providers, and organizations cannot pay for inclusion on this list. Executives are presented in alphabetical order.
Jennifer Jasmine Arfaa, PhD. Chief Experience Officer and Vice President of Patient Experience of UC Health (Cincinnati). Dr. Arfaa has been the chief experience officer and vice president of patient experience at UC Health since 2018. She works with UC Health’s Patient Experience Committee to provide the best possible experience for patients and staff. Dr. Arfaa is also an active organizational fundraiser participant in the American Heart Association’s annual Heart Walks.
Stephanie Abbott. Chief Experience Officer of Adventist Health (Roseville, Calif.). Ms. Abbott has been the chief experience officer at Adventist Health since 2021. She works with Adventist Health hospital leaders, caregivers and partners to create the best possible experience for patients, guests and communities. Ms. Abbott has strong skills in leadership, healthcare management and patient safety and relations.
Ron Baker. Vice President of Physician Enterprise at AdventHealth Kansas City (Kan.). Mr. Baker was recently appointed to his position in November 2021 after serving as CEO of St. Mary's Medical Center in Blue Springs, Mo. He also previously served as the chief patient experience officer at Saint Luke's Health System in Kansas City, Mo.
Steve Basilotto. Chief Experience Officer of Froedtert Health (Milwaukee). Mr. Basilotto has been the chief experience officer at Froedtert Health since 2018. He is responsible for finding and executing leading edge opportunities to provide customers, patients and staff with positive experiences. Mr. Basilotto has direct-to-customer experience in financial services, health insurance, technology and health provision services.
Vishal Bhalla. Senior Vice President, Chief Human Resources Officer of Atrium Health Navicent (Macon, Ga.) and Chief Experience Officer of Atrium Health (Charlotte, N.C.). Mr. Bhalla has been in his current role with Atrium Health, a 40-hospital health system, since 2021. He is skilled in leadership, strategy and customer service. Mr. Bhalla serves as the leader and driver of experience strategy for the company. He also oversees the HR efforts for the health system, which includes 70,000 team mates.
Steve Bird, MD. Clinician Experience Officer at UMass Memorial Healthcare and Professor of Emergency Medicine at UMass Chan Medical School (Worcester, Mass.). Mr. Bird has held his position with UMass Memorial Healthcare since 2019 and has been a professor with UMass Chan Medical School for 19 years. He previously served as director of the school's emergency medicine residency and the vice chair of education.
Michelle Brady. Chief Experience Officer at MidMichigan Health (Midland). Ms. Brady has served MidMichigan Health for more than 32 years. She started off in the role of director of nursing before becoming chief experience officer in 2020.
Cynthia Burger. Vice President and Chief Experience Officer of Dayton Children's Hospital (Dayton, Ohio). Ms. Burger has been the vice president and chief experience officer at Dayton Children’s Hospital since 2018. Her responsibilities include overseeing operations, patient experience and human resources for the system, which has more than 3,200 employees. Ms. Burger previously served as the vice president of patient and family experience at the hospital from 2014-18.
Lara Burnside. Chief Experience Officer of JPS Health Network (Fort Worth, Texas). Ms. Burnside has worked in the healthcare industry for 25 years, with a focus on improving employee and patient experience. In her current role, she works to create a space to achieve employee engagement and partners with the chief medical officer to reduce clinician burnout and improve well-being. Before working at JPS, she was a consultant for healthcare organizations.
Jessica Castle. Chief Experience and Marketing Officer of Phoebe Putney Health System (Albany, Ga.). Ms. Castle came to the health system over seven years ago, first as vice president of marketing, public relations and business development. She previously worked as the senior director of marketing for Atlanta-based Piedmont Healthcare.
Lindsay Caulfield. Chief Marketing and Experience Officer of Grady Health (Atlanta). Ms. Caulfield came to Grady Health in 2012. She previously worked at public relations agency Cohn & Wolfe as executive vice president. In her career, she has built and led integrated marketing communications programs, public relation initiatives and strategic planning for Fortune 500 companies.
Danita Cohen. Chief Experience Officer of University Medical Center of Southern Nevada (Las Vegas). Ms. Cohen has been the chief experience officer at the University Medical Center of Southern Nevada since 2008. She helps to uphold the expectation that every patient is treated with compassion, accountability, respect and integrity. Ms. Cohen empowers those at the bedside to provide the best care possible to patients.
Nick Colovos, MD, Chief Experience Officer of BayCare Medical Group (Tampa, Fla.). Mr. Colovos has more than 20 years of experience as a physician and is board-certified in emergency medicine. He previously was chief quality officer at Emory Physician Group Practices. He became a faculty member of Emory University School of Medicine in 2014.
Nancy Corcoran-Davidoff. Chief Experience and Human Resource Officer of Hackensack Meridian Health (Edison, N.J.). Ms. Corcoran-Davidoff has been the chief experience and human resource officer at Hackensack Meridian Health since 2017. She is responsible for the strategic leadership, design, implementation and monitoring of programs and initiatives to achieve a culture focussed on person-centered care models. Ms. Corcoran-Davidoff is skilled in leadership and organizational development, strategic planning and healthcare management.
Mary Cramer, Executive Director, Organizational Effectiveness and Chief Experience Officer of Massachusetts General Hospital (Boston). Ms. Cramer oversees internal consultants who focus on service improvement and organizational performance. She previously was director of performance excellence at New York City-based NewYork- Presbyterian Hospital.
Cassandra Crowe-Jackson. Chief Experience Officer of Sharp HealthCare (San Diego). Ms. Crowe-Jackson has been the chief experience officer at Sharp HealthCare since 2020. She has a track record of increasing the quality, level and experience of medical care for patients, families, staff and communities by using a systematic and results-driven approach. Ms. Crowe-Jackson has strong skills in healthcare management and information technology, process improvement and leadership development.
Maria Curran. Chief Experience Officer and Vice President of VCU Health System (Richmond, Va.). Ms. Curran has been the chief experience officer and vice president at the VCU Health System since 2018. She is responsible for helping provide the best experience for patients and staff members. Prior to her current role, Ms. Curran served as chief human resources officer of the health system.
Linh Dang. Chief Experience Officer of Cook County Health (Chicago). Ms. Dang is the chief experience officer at Cook County Health. She creates new initiatives aimed at enhancing both the patient and employees experience at the company. Ms. Dang is also responsible for ensuring that all patients and staff have a positive experience.
Tanesha Daniels. Chief Experience Officer of The Loretto Hospital (Chicago). Ms. Daniels has been the chief experience officer at The Loretto Hospital since 2013. In her role, she is responsible for advancing the hospital’s core values and mission of providing patient-centered care. Ms. Daniels also has an important role in improving hospital culture and interactions between the hospital and patients, families and visitors.
Lisa Drumbore. Vice President of Marketing Communication and Chief Experience Officer of Saint Peter's Healthcare System (New Brunswick, N.J.). Ms. Drumbore joined St. Peter's Healthcare in 2001 as director of service excellence, a role in which she served 15 years. She was appointed vice president and chief experience officer of the system in May 2016.
Rene Dumont. Chief Patient Experience Officer of St. Mary's Health System (Lewiston, Maine). Mr. Dumont has over 20 years in leadership experience and was appointed St. Mary's Health System's first chief patient experience officer in September 2019. In this role, he leads efforts to improve the experiences of the system's patients and family members and also oversees its Albert Lepage Center for Patient Experience.
Michelle Edwards, DNP, Chief Experience Officer of Providence (Renton, Wash.). Dr. Edwards has served as the inaugural chief experience officer at Providence, which operates 51 hospitals and nearly 1,100 clinics in seven states, since January 2021. She is responsible for modernizing and differentiating the patient experience with a focus on patient digital access and navigation. Before joining Providence, she served as enterprise senior vice president and national executive lead for advanced practice at CommonSpirit Health.
Rick Evans. Senior Vice President and Chief Experience Officer of NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital (New York City). Mr. Evans has been the senior vice president and chief experience hospital at the NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital since 2015. He is skilled in executive and healthcare management, hospital operations and patient experience. Mr. Evans is responsible for overseeing the hospital’s efforts to enhance patient experience and developing strategies to increase satisfaction.
Drew Fennell. Chief Communications and Experience Officer of ChristianaCare (Newark, Del.). Ms. Fennell has been the chief communications and experience officer at ChristianaCare since 2017. She is responsible for leading communications strategy and efforts to align with the health system's strategic aims. Ms. Fennell is skilled in community outreach, program development and public relations.
Donna Geiss. Director of Patient Experience of NYC Health+Hospitals/Jacobi (New York City). Ms. Geiss has been the director of patient experience at NYC Health+Hospitals/Jacobi since 2015. She has skills in management, research and leadership. Before her current role, Ms. Geiss was the associate director of nursing at the hospital from 2007-15.
Heather Geisler. Senior Vice President and Chief Marketing, Communications and Experience Officer of Henry Ford Health System (Detroit). Ms. Geisler was appointed to her current positions in 2021. She provides leadership on brand strategy and consumer experience. Ms. Geisler has previously served at SS+K, a New York City marketing and advertising agency, where she led efforts in support of initiatives by former first lady Michelle Obama. She was named among Hospitality Management magazine's "30 Most Influential Women in Hospitality" in 2018.
Sven Gierlinger. Chief Experience Officer of Northwell Health (New Hyde Park, N.Y.). Mr. Gierlinger is in charge of creating an engaging, innovative and collaborative culture aimed at driving organizational growth for Northwell Health. Prior to serving as chief experience officer, Mr. Gierlinger was vice president of Detroit-based Henry Ford Health System.
Mendy Goonan. Chief Experience Officer of Central Maine Healthcare (Lewiston). In her role, Ms. Goonan oversees patient experience, spiritual care, volunteer services and language services departments. She also leads a cross functional system taskforce to improve team member well-being.
Keith Gran. Chief Patient Experience Officer of University of Michigan Health System (Ann Arbor). Mr. Gran joined U-M Health in 2015 and has more than 20 years of experience in academic healthcare. Prior to his role at U-M Health, Mr. Gran served as chief operating officer for the University of Miami Medical Group.
Vivian Greenfogel. Vice President and Chief Patient Experience Officer of Crozer Health (Springfield, Pa.). Ms. Greenfogel stepped into her role as vice president and chief patient experience officer in May 2021, after serving as patient experience officer with the health system. She has more than 30 years of experience in physician and employee engagement and patient experience.
Pam Guler. Vice President and Chief Experience Officer of AdventHealth (Altamonte Springs, Fla.). Ms. Guler has been the vice president and chief experience officer at AdventHealth since 2014. She helps support the company’s mission of improving and sustaining patient-centered care. Ms. Guler is skilled in healthcare management, information technology and consulting.
Suzy Jaeger. Chief Patient Experience and Access Officer at Children's Hospital Colorado (Aurora). Ms. Jaeger provides operational management and direction to Children's Hospital Colorado system's inpatient, emergency department and urgent care services as well as its outpatient clinical practice operations for the Anschutz Medical Campus. Before her current role, she served as senior vice president of ambulatory services.
Aiyana Johnson. Chief Experience Officer of Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital (San Francisco). Ms. Johnson has been the chief experience officer at Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital since 2014. She has experience in strategic planning, project management and program evaluation. Before her current role, Ms. Johnson was the training manager at the hospital.
Debra Johnson. Chief Experience Officer of Spectrum Health Lakeland (St. Joseph, Mich.). Ms. Johnson has been the chief executive officer at Spectrum Health Lakeland since 2017. She is skilled in healthcare management, team building and patient safety. Ms. Johnson is also a member of the board at Lake Michigan College.
Franziska Jovin, MD. Senior Vice President, Chief Experience Officer of Cooper University Health Care (Camden, N.J.). Dr. Jovin has been the senior vice president, chief experience officer at Cooper University Health Care since 2019. She provides administrative oversight to the center for hospital-based services and supports health strategies. Dr. Jovin is also the co-pillar champion of quality at the health system.
Lara Klick. Vice President and Chief Patient Experience Officer at Tampa (Fla.) General Hospital. Ms. Klick has served in healthcare for almost three decades. Before joining Tampa General, she served as director of service excellence at Howard County General Hospital in Columbia, Md. She also spent 10 years at Sinai Hospital in Baltimore, serving as director of guest relations and volunteer services.
Wren Lester. Chief Experience Officer of SUNY Downstate Health Sciences University (PhD) (Brooklyn, N.Y.). Ms. Lester has been the chief experience officer at SUNY Downstate Health Sciences University since 2018. She facilitates organizational culture transformation with a focus on patient-centered care and employee engagement. Ms. Lester is also responsible for leadership development, middle manager coaching and staff training to improve the patient experience.
Scott Macicek, MD. Chief Experience Officer at Children's Hospital New Orleans. Dr. Macicek serves as chief experience officer at Children's Hospital New Orleans. Before his time at Children's Hospital New Orleans, he served at Texas Children's Hospital in Houston. Dr. Macicek is board certified in pediatrics, pediatric cardiology and adult congenital heart disease, and he is certified as a pediatric electrophysiologist by the International Board of Heart Rhythm Examiners.
Shauntee Mayfield. Chief Experience Officer of Parkland Hospital (Dallas). Ms. Mayfield has been the chief experience officer at Parkland Hospital since 2021. She is also the director of cultural competency at the hospital. Ms Mayfield aligns objectives with the mission, values and goals of the hospital to serve patients and the community.
Dwight McBee. Executive Vice President and Chief Experience Officer of Thomas Jefferson University Hospitals (Philadelphia). Mr. McBee has been the executive vice president and chief experience officer at Thomas Jefferson University Hospitals since 2022. He is an enterprise executive with strategic oversight of patient-centered care strategies. Mr. McBee is skilled in healthcare management, patient safety and customer satisfaction.
Linda McHugh. Executive Vice President, Chief Experience and People Officer of Hackensack Meridian Health (Edison, N.J.). Ms. McHugh has been the executive vice president, chief experience and people officer at Hackensack Meridian Health since 2021. She is skilled in healthcare management, revenue cycle, strategic planning and leadership. Before Hackensack Meridian Health, Ms. McHugh spent 35 years at the Cleveland Clinic, serving as an administrator, executive administrator and chief human resources officer during that time.
Stephen Meth. Chief Experience Officer of Nuvance Health (Danbury, Conn.). Mr. Meth has been the chief experience officer at Nuvance Health since 2020. He has experience in healthcare management, patient safety and strategic planning. Prior to his current position, Mr. Meth served as the chief experience officer at Prime Healthcare Services from 2015-20.
Sue Murphy. Chief Experience Officer at Northwest Community Healthcare (Arlington Heights, Ill.). Ms. Murphy is an innovative leader with deep expertise in hospital operations, patient experience, staff development and change management that inspires teamwork across disciplines. Prior to taking up her current role at Northwest Community Healthcare in February 2022, she was the chief experience officer at UChicago Medicine and before that was the director of patient experience at MacNeal Hospital in Berwyn, Ill.
Shannon Phillips, MD. Chief Patient Safety and Experience Officer of Intermountain Healthcare (Salt Lake City). Dr. Phillips the chief patient safety and experience officer at Intermountain Healthcare. She works with others to continue to improve the quality of care and patient experience at the health system. Dr. Phillips is also on the board of directors for the National Quality Forum.
Shweta Ponnappa. Senior Vice President, Chief Digital Experience Officer at Providence (Renton, Wash.). Under Ms. Ponnappa's leadership, Providence has developed and implemented innovative, powerful digital customer experiences, including founding and overseeing the digital marketing function of the system as well as implementing its digital front door, Express Care. Prior to joining the system in October 2017, she was head of marketing and merchandising at Amazon.
Marianne Rowan-Braun. Chief Patient Experience Officer at UCLA Health (Los Angeles). With more than 25 years of leadership experience, Ms. Rowan-Braun currently leads the assessment and execution of UCLA Health's patient experience and engagement programs. Before she took on her role at UCLA in September 2018, she was president and CEO of Ronald McDonald House Charities of Baltimore and vice president of patient experience at the University of Maryland Medical Center in Baltimore.
Kirsten Royster. President, COO and Patient Experience Officer at Novant Health Kernersville (N.C.) Medical Center. Ms. Royster has 20 years’ experience in operations, strategic planning, program development, patient experience and consultative engagements. She joined the system in August 2005 and in that time has demonstrated success in positioning people, processes and technology.
Eugene Scioscia, MD. Chief Experience Officer of Allegheny Health Network (Pittsburgh). Dr. Scioscia has been the chief experience officer at Allegheny Health Network since 1989. He is helping build a systemwide culture of service excellence and superior patient communication. In addition to working at Allegheny Health Network, Dr. Scioscia is also continuing to work at his gynecology practice.
Amy Searls. Chief Experience Officer of Prime Healthcare (Ontario, Calif.). Ms. Searls has been the chief experience officer at Prime Healthcare since 2020. She is responsible for overseeing all patient experiences in more than 40 hospitals across the country. Ms. Searls has also led a company initiative to put more focus on mental health and wellness.
Julie Spencer Washington. Senior Vice President, Chief Marketing, Communications and Experience Officer at Trinity Health (Livonia, Mich.). Ms. Spencer Washington has 30 years of experience in strategic marketing, brand building and digital communications. She also serves as a board trustee at Union Institute & University in Cincinnati and Women Helping Women, an organization that supports survivors of gender-based violence in higher education.
Charleen Tachibana, DNP, RN. Senior Vice President and Chief Quality, Safety and Patient Experience Officer at Virginia Mason Franciscan Health (Seattle). Dr. Tachibana provides strategic and operational accountability for clinical quality, safety and the patient experience for the Pacific Northwest Division of CommonSpirit Health. Her leadership can be seen throughout the Virginia Mason Franciscan Health system, which includes 11 hospitals and nearly 300 locations.
Tom Tull. Vice President, Chief Experience Officer of Ballad Health (Johnson City, Tenn.). Mr. Tull has been the vice president, chief experience officer at Ballad Health since 1991. He is skilled in healthcare management, physician relations and leadership. Mr. Tull is also a member of the American College of Healthcare Executives.
Editor's note: This article was updated July 21 at 12:10 p.m. CT.