Becker's Healthcare is pleased to honor these impactful chief experience officers for hospitals and health systems across the U.S. for 2023.
Chief experience officers balance the best interests of caregivers, patients and leadership to improve and continue to deliver excellent care and patient experience at their organizations. They ensure an excellent care culture in their staff that translates into better outcomes for patients.
This list is based on nominations, to view future list nominations visit 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.
Contact Brendan Talian at btalian@beckershealthcare.com with questions or comments on this list.
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.
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.
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.
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.
Jennifer Jasmine E. Arfaa, PhD, CPXP. Chief Experience Officer, Vice President of Patient Experience at UC Health (Cincinnati). Dr. Arfaa became the first-ever chief experience officer at UC Health in August 2018 and since then has focused on elevating the patient and family experience. Prior to joining UC Health, Dr. Arfaa was the chief patient experience officer and vice president for patient experience at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital in Philadelphia, where she created the hospital's first Patient and Family Advisory Council.
Christine Albert. Chief Marketing and Experience Officer of LCMC Health (New Orleans). Ms. Albert is the chief marketing and experience officer for LCMC Health, a nine-hospital system. She provides strategic leadership for marketing, planning and employee experience across the entire LCMC network. Since joining LCM Health, she has developed an integrated approach for the system’s internal and external communications, marketing initiatives, team workflow and staffing model with customer relationship management as a cornerstone of marketing activities. She led the transformation of LCMC into an extraordinary health system designed to deliver coordinated, seamless care. The brand celebrates the legacy, community, and personality of the areas LCMC Health serves.
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.
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.
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.
Delinda Pendleton, RN, MSN, CPHQ, CPXP, FPCC. Director, Patient Experience and Strategic Clinical Initiatives at Fox Chase Cancer Center (Philadelphia). As director of patient experience and strategic clinical initiatives at Fox Chase Cancer Center, Ms. Pendleton works closely with the chief nursing officer and senior leadership to develop short-term and long-term patient experience goals for the institution and leads strategic initiatives to reach these goals. In doing so, she manages customer complaints and resolves issues promptly and effectively. She represents the patient’s voice in the organization and helps all team members there ensure the best possible experience for patients. She led the transition to Qualtrics for patient experience data through the Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems survey, which allows Fox Chase to better disseminate results dashboards to internal audiences and reinforces accountability in patient care.
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.
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
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.
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.
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 position 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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
Leslie Jurecko, MD, MBA. Chief Safety, Quality, and Experience Officer of Cleveland Clinic (Cleveland). Dr. Jurecko serves as chief safety, quality and experience officer at Cleveland Clinic, a nonprofit 6,102-bed healthcare system with 19 hospitals and 226 outpatient locations. She also oversees strategic alignment at international locations in Abu Dhabi, London and Toronto. Dr. Jurecko is responsible for the development and execution of Cleveland Clinic’s enterprise safety, quality and experience strategy. Dr. Jurecko has championed patient-centered care to deliver transformative gains in clinical care, process effectiveness and high-reliability standards across Cleveland Clinic.
Linda McHugh. Executive Vice President, Chief Experience and People Officer of Hackensack Meridian Health (Edison, N.J.). In her role, Ms. McHugh is responsible for the strategic management and delivery of the experience, hospitality, people programs, policies and processes across Hackensack Meridian Health. Her oversight is specific to workforce planning, productivity and excellence. She ensures the network maintains proper staffing levels, correct organizational structure and functions at the highest possible level to provide a continuum of care. Under Ms. McHugh’s leadership, Hackensack Meridian Health focuses on the team member experience to ensure its offerings remain best-in-class and bring real-world value to team members and their families.
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 relations initiatives and strategic planning for Fortune 500 companies.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
Melanie Husk. Senior Vice President and Chief Consumer Officer of Baptist Health (Jacksonville, Fla.). Ms. Husk has been at Baptist Health for 17 years and became the system’s first chief consumer officer in January 2020. She leads efforts toward delivering excellent care and services. At the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, she spearheaded the health system’s quick pivot from manual processes to cloud-based technology to provide patients and physicians with proactive automated resources. Ms. Husk was also instrumental in developing Baptist Health’s diversity, equity and inclusion eight-point action plan and was an inaugural member of the organization’s 28-member DEI Council.
Mendy Goonan. Chief Experience Officer of Central Maine Healthcare (Lewiston). Ms. Goonan has served as chief experience officer of Central Maine Healthcare since 2020. In her role, she is responsible for the strategic leadership and execution of initiatives to improve the patient, family and team member experience. She also oversees patient and team member experience, language services, volunteer services, spiritual care, and diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging. Prior to her current role, she acted as Louisville, Ky.-based Norton Healthcare as the director of patient experience. She has been working in healthcare for 18 years.
Michael Frumovitz, MD. Chief Patient Experience Officer at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center (Houston). Dr. Frumovitz was one of the original leaders who created the patient experience division of the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in 2017. Now, he leads the cancer center’s efforts to provide human-centered, value-driven care. He also serves as medical director for the askMDAnderson call center, where he implemented a round-the-clock call center of experienced oncology clinicians.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
Seanna-Kaye Denham, PhD, FPCC. Chief Experience Officer of NYC Health + Hospitals/Kings County (New York City). Dr. Denham has been at NYC Health + Hospitals/Kings County since the start of her career. Now as its chief experience officer, Dr. Denham is its foremost thought-leader and strategist on person-centered approaches to optimizing human relationships in the healthcare setting. She and her team help their organization practice inclusive employee engagement through a robust executive leadership rounds program: the Care Experience Council and peer-led recognition programs. She led the organization to improve its approaches to patient and employee experience.
Shannon Phillips, MD. Chief Patient Safety and Experience Officer of Intermountain Healthcare (Salt Lake City). Dr. Phillips is 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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
Vishal Bhalla. Chief Experience Officer of Advocate Health (Charlotte, N.C.). Mr. Bhalla has a history of facilitating a positive culture focused on constant improvement which he has brought to Advocate Health’s 6 million annual patient visits since 2021. He believes in balancing a data-centric approach with relationship-building to orchestrate an environment that attracts and retains top talent with programs and initiatives that foster the well-being of teammates. During his tenure, engagement scores have consistently risen under his unique approach that combines hard data with qualitative measures.
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.