Associate Chiefs Advocate for and Empower Physicians
When Derek Wheeler took the helm as Chief of Staff last July, he knew he needed to make some changes.
“I have light-years of respect for Dr. Farrell, who did an outstanding job as my predecessor,” he says, “but he and I both agreed after much discussion that we needed a new approach to the role.”
That approach involved the naming of four associate chiefs of staff who would assist Wheeler in making sure the medical staff and hospital administration are aligned in carrying out the 2020 Strategic Plan and delivering safe, excellent and affordable care.
“Cincinnati Children’s has shifted from a community-based physician model to an employed physician model,” Wheeler explains. “Our medical staff has over 2,000 members. Of those, roughly 1,600 are employed here. That number also includes about 400 nurse practitioners and allied health staff. We’ve grown so much, it’s impossible for one person to handle it all.”
The four associate chiefs and their focus areas are:
- Rich Falcone, MD, Surgical Services
- Patty Manning-Courtney, MD, Ambulatory Services
- Christy White, MD, Destination Excellence
- Joe Luria, MD, Acute Care Services
Their offices are housed on the sixth floor of Location D alongside those of Patient Services leadership. That’s no coincidence, says Wheeler, who explains that the associate chief organization model is designed to break down silos.
“For a long time, physicians worked on one side, and Patient Services worked on the other side,” he says. “We attempted to collaborate as much as possible, but it was difficult. On the inpatient side, we’ve tried to do a better job of aligning our efforts through Operational Excellence, where you have a medical director and clinical director leading in tandem. We want to apply that same principle in other areas.”
Community pediatricians will also benefit. Says Wheeler, “Hospital and community physicians tend to work in their own silos too. With four associate chiefs, more of my time can be spent interacting with community doctors. I’m hoping to visit a practice each month so I can listen to their concerns. Dr. Farrell trained most of them, so they knew each other pretty well. I don’t have that shared background, so I’m hoping to build closer relationships with them.”
The associate chiefs bring expertise to their respective areas and are charged with empowering physicians to get work done. For example, if a unit-based director is having a problem, he or she can go to the associate chief of their area to get the situation resolved.
Adds Wheeler, “The point is not to create more bureaucracy. Rather, we want to break down barriers so everyone on the medical staff has an advocate at the leadership level.”
