Trinity Health Restructures Senior Leadership Team
Michael Slubowski to lead major focus on ambulatory services and physician network
Novi, Michigan (May 28, 2009) – Trinity Health is reorganizing its senior leadership team to place more focus on ambulatory services and physician networks, and better align the organization to take a lead role in a new era of care delivery being advanced by health care reform. The changes are effective on July 1, 2009.
Trinity Health’s employed physicians, ambulatory and home care services represent nearly half of Trinity Health’s total revenue, necessitating leadership by a dedicated senior executive focused on strategy, growth, coordinating the care continuum, and improving performance in these areas. To lead the effort, Trinity Health has appointed Michael Slubowski to the new role of president of health networks. Slubowski is a Fellow of both the American College of Medical Practice Executives and the American College of Healthcare Executives. He has been with Trinity Health for 12 years.
Slubowski will lead the development of health networks, including ambulatory services, physician alignment and practice management initiatives, home care, and long-term care initiatives across Trinity Health’s network of 45 member hospitals in seven states. The strategy will include physician alignment in market-based networks that will encompass the more than 8,400 affiliated physicians practicing at Trinity Health facilities.
“The creation of this dedicated senior executive role overseeing our substantial operations in ambulatory services, physician networks, home care and long-term care represents an important shift in our strategy as we move more rapidly from a hospital-centric organization to a health delivery organization that emphasizes a distributed, efficient model of care that is more tightly aligned with our physicians,” said Joseph Swedish, president and CEO, Trinity Health. “Mike has a mastery of physician group and ambulatory services management. Coupled with his experience in managing the entire continuum of care, I am confident he will be able to quickly advance these strategies.”
Other management moves place more focus on cost control, clinical quality, community benefit programs and growth imperatives.
With Slubowski’s focus shifting toward ambulatory and physician network strategies, Trinity Health has established a new position of president of hospital operations to manage day-to-day functions. Named to this position on an interim basis is Rick O’Connell, who has been with Trinity Health since October 2008 as interim COO of Saint Alphonsus Regional Medical Center in Boise, Idaho. O’Connell has 35 years of progressive health care experience in executive level roles including president and CEO of three hospital systems: Penrose-St. Francis Health Services in Colorado Springs, Colo., Lucerne Medical Center in Orlando, Fla., and Columbia Medical Center in Daytona Beach, Fla.
The realignment includes naming Daniel Hale as executive vice president of the Trinity Institute of Health and Community Benefit. Hale will continue to lead various legal, public policy and advocacy initiatives in addition to his new duties.
Other changes include the promotion of chief medical officer Terry O’Rourke, MD, to chief clinical officer overseeing clinical safety and outcomes, clinical informatics and the integration of physicians and patient care executives. Debra Canales, chief human resource officer, has been promoted to chief administrative officer where her current human resource duties will expand to include corporate logistics and the management of various administrative services.
“This new reporting structure positions Trinity Health well for future advancement in a rapidly evolving industry,” Swedish said. “Our team is moving in an innovative and challenging direction as we adapt to the many new challenges brought on by economic uncertainty, as well as the evolving nature of health care reform.”
About Trinity Health
Trinity Health is the fourth-largest Catholic health care system in the country. Based in Novi, Mich., Trinity Health operates 45 acute-care hospitals, 379 outpatient facilities, 26 long-term care facilities, and numerous home health offices and hospice programs in seven core states. Employing 46,000 full-time staff and 8,374 active physicians, Trinity Health reported $6.4 billion in unrestricted revenue and $376 million in community benefits in fiscal year 2008. For more information about Trinity Health, visit www.trinity-health.org.