Welcome to this week's Chutes & Ladders, our roundup of hirings, firings and retirings throughout the industry. Please submit the good news—or the bad—from your shop, and we will feature it here at the end of each week.
MetroHealth System
Craig Richmond resigned as the chief financial officer of MetroHealth System, the health system announced Wednesday.
The Cleveland-based health system did not confirm whether the departure was in any way related to the firing of former president and CEO Akram Boutros in November 2022. Boutros was dismissed after the MetroHealth board of trustees discovered that the CEO authorized more than $1.9 million in supplemental bonuses to himself. Boutros has denied any wrongdoing and sued the hospital board for defamation and retaliation.
In a March 1 email to employees, current CEO Airica Steed acknowledged Richmond’s service to the company which began as vice president of revenue cycle in 2010. He stepped into the role of CFO in 2014. "Craig enhanced information technology and supply chain operations and played a central role in helping the System effectively respond to the COVID-19 pandemic," Steed wrote to employees.
Effective March 6, former vice president of finance of the health system Geoff Himes will fill the role of interim CFO.
FarmboxRx
Sanjeev Balsara is joining FarmboxRx as the new chief growth officer of the food-as-medicine company.
Balsara has spent three decades in commercial and governmental healthcare work with 15 years as an executive within the payer sector. Balsara comes to FarmboxRx by way of FEI Systems where he was the senior vice president of growth. In that role, he led national sales and account teams promoting solutions and services to health plans.
Balsara also spent time as senior vice president of business development at Advantmed, staff vice president of sales development at Anthem and vice president at UnitedHealth Group.
Farmbox has seen recent growth, including $60 million in 2022 revenue, as food-as-medicine gains traction. The company delivers medicated meals and produce prescriptions in partnership with Medicaid and Medicare programs.
Linus Health
Leah Ray has joined the executive leadership team of digital health company Linus Health, known for its “clock-draw” test used to screen for early dementia, as the company’s first chief customer officer.
CEO David Bates of Linus said in a press release that Ray will aid in the expansion of customer teams, infrastructure and programs. She will be responsible for the full customer experience as the company expands the reach of its recently-launched digital cognitive assessment platform.
Ray's career spans over 25 years in senior leadership positions at SaaS-solution provider companies. Most recently, Ray filled the role of chief customer officer at Jvion, a clinical artificial intelligence solution provider serving over 20 health systems. Previously, she held the position of senior vice president of customer experience at healthcare claims solution provider Zelis.
Linus’ digital cognitive assessment platform launch comes as long-awaited Alzheimer’s and dementia drugs enter the market.
Henry Ford Health
Brien Smith has been named the chair of the department of neurology at Henry Ford Health.
Smith returns to the Detroit-based health system after serving as system vice president in the neuroscience service line at OhioHealth and interim institutional office of the OhioHealth Research Institute.
Smith previously spent 18 years within the Henry Ford Health neurology department. He filled various roles at Henry Ford, including director of the Epilepsy Monitoring Unit, medical director of the Comprehensive Epilepsy Program and director of the Clinical Neurophysiology Program.
The health system recently announced a $2.5 billion partnership with Michigan State University and the Pistons that will include a hospital expansion.
> Garnet Health announced three recent promotions. Moira Mencher has been promoted to director of planning and community relations. Cari McGinnis has been promoted to IT manager, revenue cycle and health information management. Shawn Springer has been promoted to administrator of technical services.
> Vitality Health, a U.K.-based private payer, is growing its U.S. market with the appointment of Alan Spiro as chief clinical advisor.
> CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield has named Daniel Zohorsky vice president of strategy and corporate development.
> Medisafe, a medication engagement platform, appointed Lynn O'Connor Vos as board chair, Stacey Wasserman as chief business officer and Lyndi Hirsch as senior vice president of strategic marketing.
> Transcarent, a healthcare platform for employers, welcomed Tom Richards as executive vice president of business development.
> MSU Health Care tapped Michael Weiner as its chief medical officer.
> Duke University Health System selected Thomas Owens as its new executive vice president and chief operating officer.
> LCMC Health has announced that Maurice “Mel” L. Lagarde, III joined the hospital system as chief strategy and growth officer.
> PointClickCare, a cloud-based healthcare software provider, has added Leslie Campbell to its board of directors.
> Emtelligent, a natural language processing software provider for healthcare organizations, named Kim Perry as the company’s first chief growth officer.
> Intelerad Medical Systems, a provider of enterprise medical imaging solutions, hired Robert Petrocelli as the company’s chief technology officer.
> UMass Memorial Health appointed Lynda Young as board chair and Elvira Guardiola as vice chair of the UMMH Board of Trustees.
> ProSomnus, a Sleep Apnea medical device provider, announced Brian Dow as chief financial officer.
> Edifecs, a health information technology solutions company, tapped Tom Schultz as chief revenue officer.
> Belong Health announced that chief financial officer Jonathan Davis has been promoted to president of the payer.
> East Boston Neighborhood Health Center appointed Ryan Boxill as executive vice president and chief operations officer.
> WellSpan Health unveiled James Stuccio as senior vice president for the East Region of the health system.
> Vida Health hired Bill Fryling as vice president of third-party administrator sales of the digital health company.
> Surround Care, a population healthcare company, welcomed Craig Samitt as chief executive officer of Surround Care’s National Physician Enterprise.
> Kartos Therapeutics announced that Srdan (Serge) Verstovsek has been named chief medical officer of the biotech company.