USA— Dr. Terry Gilliland has been appointed CEO of Geisinger, succeeding current CEO Jaewon Ryu, who will oversee Risant Health. Gilliland will be Geisinger’s eighth CEO in its 109-year existence.
Dr. Gilliland has vast expertise and has held leadership positions in various major healthcare delivery and payer organizations.
Dr. Gilliland was previously the chief medical officer and chief science officer at Cogitativo, an artificial intelligence and machine learning firm focusing on healthcare.
He previously held the positions of executive vice president of healthcare quality and affordability at Blue Shield of California and senior vice president and chief medical officer at Sentara Healthcare.
In addition to being a practicing general surgeon at Kaiser Permanente, Dr. Gilliland has held different leadership responsibilities at the Mid-Atlantic Permanente Medical Group and the Colorado Permanente Medical Group.
Dr. Gilliland earned a Bachelor of Science in Biology from Stanford University, a Doctorate of Medicine from the University of California, Los Angeles, and a Master of Science in Management from the Stanford Graduate School of Business.
Dr. Gilliland and his wife currently reside in Steamboat Springs, Colorado, and will soon relocate to Pennsylvania.
Gilliland will be in charge of the 10-hospital system, a health plan with over 500,000 members, a research institute, and the Geisinger College of Health Sciences, according to the release.
Gilliland takes on this role as Geisinger forecasts a US$37 million operating deficit for 2023, up from a US$239 million loss in 2022.
Heather Acker, chair of the Geisinger Board of Directors, welcomed him on behalf of the Board and expressed confidence, emphasizing that the board conducted a thorough national search before making this decision.
She went on to say that the role of heading Geisinger is unique, as It necessitates a strong dedication to the company’s goal, which includes making better health more accessible to their patients and members throughout Pennsylvania, innovative care delivery, and teaching future caregivers.
Dr. Gilliland, for his part, stated that leading Geisinger is an honor because of its history, mission, and reputation, and that it is an opportunity of a lifetime.
He went on to say that he became a surgeon to better the lives of his patients, and that leading Geisinger’s 25,000 dedicated professionals will allow him to enhance the lives of hundreds of thousands of people in communities across Pennsylvania.
His predecessor, Dr. Ryu, voiced confidence, adding that while the healthcare industry faces unprecedented challenges with the need to continue evolving, succeeding, and providing for the communities, Dr. Gilliland is best qualified to lead given his expertise as a physician and leader.
Risant is a nonprofit health system founded in April of last year when Oakland, California-based Kaiser Permanente announced plans to buy Geisinger, situated in Danville, Pennsylvania.
Geisinger will become a part of Risant as part of the proposed merger, which is still subject to regulatory approval.
Kaiser aims to leverage Risant to acquire and operate additional nonprofit health systems. However, Geisinger will maintain its own name and objectives, according to the initial release.
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