SUCCESS STORIES
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HEALTHCARE CLIENT TO READ OUR STORY OF A SUCCESSFUL SEARCH
THE CLIENT: CHRISTUS St. Frances Cabrini Hospital
Located in Alexandria, Louisiana, CHRISTUS St. Frances Cabrini Hospital (SFCH) is a 293-bed facility employing approximately 1,600 associates and a medical staff of over 324 physicians. SFCH anchors the regional system entity, CHRISTUS St. Frances Cabrini Health System, which includes two other managed hospitals and 17 school-based clinics in five parishes in Central Louisiana. The challenge -find a President to provide more direct leadership and operational oversight for SFCH, while connecting with community leaders and stakeholders.
Chris Karam
CEO, CHRISTUS St. Frances Cabrini Health System
Chris Karam, Chief Executive Officer of CHRISTUS St. Frances Cabrini Health System was the primary contact with Ivan Bartolome of HealthSearch Partners. He described the need for the newly created position:
“With our region expanding from Northern to Southwestern Louisiana and into Southeast Texas, my responsibilities broadened. It was determined that we needed to split the CEO/President role. We began by looking for a candidate for president with strong ethics that was comfortable within our faith-based culture. We asked ourselves, ‘How do we look like the communities we serve?’”
Background and experience were only part of the equation. Karam explained:
“We needed to find someone with just the right balance. We asked HealthSearch Partners to find someone who was mission minded, embraced our core values and had a strong business acumen. Despite the challenges posed by Covid-19 restrictions, Ivan and his team delivered us with an exemplary slate of well-vetted candidates.”
Following a three-month search, Monte Wilson was hired as President of CHRISTUS St. Frances Hospital.
Wilson and HealthSearch’s Bartolome established a 10-year relationship. Wilson commented:
“For me, there was no trust issue with Ivan. He had followed my career through the years and knew that the position with CHRISTUS St. Frances fit perfectly with my personal values and leadership style. Even with interviews being conducted 100% virtually, the lines of communication were effective. There were no issues or surprises. As a candidate, I wholeheartedly recommend HealthSearch Partners. They are professional, true to their word and diligent in making sure both sides of the search feel comfortable and well represented.”
Dr. Mervat Abdelhak
AHIMA past president and board member
THE CLIENT: AHIMA
The client: Headquartered in Chicago, IL, the American Health Information Management Association (AHIMA) was established to facilitate the standard collection of patient data to support the measurement and management of quality outcomes. AHIMA is governed by a 13-member board of directors that meets approximately five times a year. It is a wellestablished international healthcare association with over 100,000 members. The challenge – find a CEO for a world-class, not-for-profit organization. The time frame is short, involving the board of directors who are in different geographic regions across the U.S.
Dr. Mervat Abdelhak, an AHIMA past president and board member, served on the CEO search committee. The association began by requesting proposals from several search firms.
“Barry Cesafsky engaged all of our board members and assisted with refining the objectives of our CEO position. He was 100% focused and didn’t oversell. As a board, we asked ourselves ‘Is there any value? Does using a smaller firm impact our timeline?’ We ultimately decided that Barry’s firm fit our culture – small and family oriented with a personal touch.”
Abdelhak added, Barry made sure they knew what we needed in the ideal candidate:
“Barry went above expectations in gathering information about our association in order to find the best candidate for us. He interviewed board members and top staff and attended national meetings. He looked outside the profession and focused on the skills that fit with our organization.”
The lines of communication were right on target:
“It was a difficult task to coordinate the schedules of the board members, search committee and candidates. Barry found a centrally-located, private place for us to convene, and he kept us all apprised of how the process was progressing.”
AHIMA’S NEW CEO
Dr. Wylecia Wiggs Harris CEO
After a six-month search, Dr. Wylecia Wiggs Harris was named the CEO at AHIMA. She was pleased with the way the interviews were conducted:
“Thanks to Barry and his open style, I knew the expectations of the position and felt comfortable with the interviews. I showed up as the best version of myself thanks to the preparation I received from Barry. He was responsive, and I liked the fact that I was consistently talking with him and not passed off to others within the firm.”
On-boarding was one of my primary questions during the interview process, Harris said:
“Barry has stayed in contact with me throughout my first year and beyond. He checks in to make sure that I am still excited about the position and have the support to do my very best. I could not ask for a more positive experience.”
THE CLIENT: Located in Ft. Lauderdale, FL, Holy Cross Hospital is a private Catholic, non-profit community hospital that opened in 1955 to serve the sick and injured without regard to race, religion or nationality. Owned and sponsored by the Sisters of Mercy for decades, the hospital is now sponsored by Catholic Health Ministries and is a member of Trinity Health. Its medical staff consists of more than 600 highly skilled physicians representing nearly every specialty in medicine. Their skills attract patients from around South Florida, across the United States and around the globe.
Ane McNeil, Chief Human Resources Officer for Trinity Health Michigan and National (Michigan/Florida/Georgia) was the primary contact with Ivan Bartolome and Laura Conley with HealthSearch Partners. She described the collaborative effort in the CEO search:
The challenge: find a CEO that embodies the principles and values of the faith based, non-profit hospital, while building relationships with doctors and donors
“From the beginning, it was apparent that HealthSearch was committed to finding the best candidates for our position. Ivan and Laura arranged their schedules so they were able to meet with over 50 of our doctors, making sure they had a complete list of responsibilities and a sense of challenges that the CEO might face.”
The list of skills needed was long. McNeil explained:
“We were looking for a leader who would influence change and drive us to a strong financial outcome. Additionally, we needed someone with strong community connections to interface with donors and a person with interpersonal skills to relate to our doctors. We asked HealthSearch to present us with a diverse panel, and they delivered.”
Sr. Joanne Courneen, RSM, chair of the Holy Cross Hospital Board of Directors, served on the search committee. She described the working environment:
“It was immediately clear that they had done their homework and that they understood our culture. They knew we needed someone who understood our vision and values and who would work with compassion for others. I was grateful that they were sensitive to the thoughts of the committee. The lines of communication were seamless, and they worked diligently to keep the process moving within our tight timeline.”
After a four-month search, Mark Doyle was named the CEO at Holy Cross Hospital.
"Mark is a trusted leader who has spearheaded financial turnarounds, growth initiatives and quality improvements around the country," said Rob Casalou, President and CEO, Trinity Health Michigan and Southeast Region. "The Trinity Health leadership team is confident he will bolster our position as this community's trusted health partner for life."
"I appreciate the confidence Trinity Health, the Holy Cross Hospital Board and Physicians have displayed in selecting me to be the CEO of such a reputable and outstanding organization," Doyle said. "I am extremely excited to get started and continue Holy Cross's commitment to high quality and patient centered care."
McNeil summed up the experience:
“HealthSearch became an extension of our team. There was never a gap between our expectations and their deliverables. We would not hesitate to contact them again for recruitment needs.”
THE CLIENT: Sparrow Eaton Hospital
Sparrow Eaton Hospital (SEH), located in Charlotte, Michigan is a 25-bed Critical Access Hospital with a rich 80-year history and strong local community support. Formerly known as Hayes Green Beach Hospital, the organization collaborated with Lansing Michigan's Sparrow Health System (SHS) for several years before becoming a full member of SHS in 2019. The challenge - find a President to provide leadership and operational oversight for SEH, while connecting with the community.
Kira Carter-Robertson, SVP of Affiliate Operations for Sparrow Health System worked with Barry Cesafsky at HealthSearch Partners and explained the unique qualifications for this role.
"We were looking for an innovative leader with critical access/rural health experience who would serve as the face of the hospital on behalf of the Health System within the local market. Sparrow Health System was an independently owned hospital and was recently acquired by Sparrow Health System. We needed someone who would be a bridge builder, to help support the hospital through this transition and address the local needs at the System level"
Kira Carter-Robertson
SVP, Affiliate Operations
Sparrow Health Systems
Sherry Pfaff-Doody, Director of Talent Acquisition for Sparrow Health System served as the primary contact The decision was made to hire an outside recruiter to conduct a national search. After reviewing several RFP's, HealthSearch Partners was chosen:
"We appreciated the relationship we established immediately with Barry and his team's upfront understanding of the need for a diverse slate of candidates. Barry took the time to fully grasp the dynamics and history of the hospital within our system and brought unbiased expertise that was spot-on. He worked easily with our 11-member search committee comprised of both hospital and health system board members, and he provided us with a number of viable candidates."
Sherry Pfaff-Doody
Director, Talent Acquisition
Sparrow Health System
Communication and time frame commitments were all met, Pfaff-Doody explained:
"Working within the constraints of travel restrictions and social distancing guidelines, Barry efficiently scheduled candidate interviews by Zoom and turned around package materials in a timely manner. We began our process in June and hired someone in November. We were so pleased with his service that we have already requested an RFP for another senior leader position in our system."
Helen Johnson was hired as the President of Sparrow Eaton Hospital. She explains her experience as an applicant:
"Barry was extremely valuable and shepherded me throughout the process. He was responsive and provided me with CV review, timelines and information on those with whom I would be interviewing. The teleconferencing interviews felt natural and seamless. He ended up being my biggest cheerleader, and we established a lifelong friendship."
