St. Louis-based SSM Health Care is re-organizing into three operating divisions in a move that system President and Chief Executive William Thompson said will help SSM to improve the way it delivers care.
The system has named the heads of two of the divisions and is recruiting the head for the third:
- Chris Howard will serve as president of the hospital operations division and as executive vice president for SSM. The presidents of all 18 of SSM's hospitals will report to him. Howard will continue as president of SSM Health Care St. Louis until the system names his successor.
- Dr. Gaurov Dayal will be president of the health care delivery, finance and integration division and executive vice president for SSM. He will oversee the creation of clinically integrated organizations as well as accountable care organizations. Dayal was SSM chief medical officer and senior vice president for physician integration and innovation.
- SSM is recruiting for the presidency of the physician organization and ambulatory operations division. That person also will be an executive vice president for SSM. The person will create a system-wide physician organization.
In a release announcing the reorganization, Thompson said the changes will help the system to better position itself for health reform by creating integrated delivery networks, focusing on population health, giving physicians more leadership opportunities, coordinating care across the continuum, creating new models for delivering care and improving clinical care.