Hartford Business Journal

HARTFORDBUSINESS.COM | October 10, 2022 33 POWER 25 IN HEALTHCARE JEFFREY FLAKS & BIMAL PATEL It's not often a CEO of a major compa- ny would admit publicly that his or her industry is broken. But that's exactly what Hartford HealthCare CEO Jeff Flaks said during a May conference — titled "Healthcare's Future: The Post- COVID World" — held in Rocky Hill. "Health care is bro- ken. It's not equita- ble, not accessible enough and our whole vision has to be to completely disrupt ourselves," Flaks said at the conference, attended by health insurance, pharmaceutical and hospital executives. "We must move away from fee for service. We need a massive overhaul of the system." Flaks, of course, may be in one of the most influential positions to try and change that system. Flaks oversees a statewide health system with seven hospitals, including flagship Hartford Hospital. Hartford HealthCare recorded $5 billion in operating revenue in fiscal 2021, which represented nearly one of every three operating dollars collected by all Con- necticut health systems combined. Since joining the organization in 2004, he's played a key role in helping build out the HHC system, climbing the ranks over the years into bigger leader- ship roles. HHC is the second-largest health system in Connecticut, behind Yale New Haven Health, and its Connecti- cut market share has grown of late to within just a few percentage points of the New Haven-based system. With its purchase of St. Vincent's Medical Center in Bridgeport in 2019, HHC made a big play in Fairfield County, investing millions to renovate the aging facility. However, Hartford HealthCare's in- creasing size and market power have recently drawn the ire of a competitor and some consumers. In January, St. Francis Hospital and Medical Center filed an antitrust lawsuit against Hartford HealthCare and its subsidiar- ies, claiming HHC is trying to create a monopoly on hospital services by acquiring physician practices, partic- ularly cardiologists, and demanding that they refer their patients only to Hartford HealthCare. And in February, a group of Connecti- cut residents sued Hartford Health- Care, accusing it of driving up prices through anti-competitive practices. Hartford HealthCare has said both lawsuits are without merit, but all eyes will be on how the legal proceedings play out in court. Flaks is also a major cheerleader for the city of Hartford, which HHC made a big commitment to with new operations downtown at 100 Pearl St. Hartford HealthCare is moving its corporate headquarters there, along with hun- dreds of jobs — one of the few employ- ers to grow its center-city presence since the beginning of the pandemic. Bimal Patel leads Hartford Health- Care's flagship Hartford Hospital and Hartford region, and he's also a senior vice president of the parent company. He's risen through the care provider's ranks over the years. Patel was hired by Hartford Hospital in 2009 and was a project management executive, playing a key role in develop- ing a 20-year master plan and complet- ing 400,000 square feet of upgrades to the hospital. In 2014 he was appointed senior vice president for operational integration for Hartford HealthCare, put in charge of systemwide services, including pharmacy, lab, radiology, real estate, facilities and construction and engi- neering, among other services. Patel recently led the debut of Hart- ford Hospital's new Bliss Wing, a 50,000-square-foot facility expansion on the care provider's main campus that increases intensive-care unit, oper- ating room and other capacities. MONTEZ CARTER & THOMAS BURKE There's a new leader at Trinity Health of New England, parent company to Hartford's St. Francis Hospital and Medical Center, Johnson Memorial Hos- pital in Stafford Springs, St. Mary's Hospital in Water- bury and Mercy Medical Center in Springfield, Mass. Montez Carter took over the CEO role Oct. 3, replacing Reginald Eadie who held the position since 2018. Carter — who began his career as a pharmacist — most recently served as president and CEO of St. Mary's Health Care System, based in Athens, Georgia, which means he is new to the Con- necticut market. He's taking over a health system that is trying to compete with the larger Hartford HealthCare and Yale New Haven Health systems. In fiscal 2021, Trinity Health of New England reported $1.6 billion in operating revenue and an operating surplus of $34.7 million, according to the Office of Health Strategy. Carter earned his doctoral degree in pharmacy from the University of Mississippi and an MBA from the University of Alabama. He is a fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives and serves on several boards, including the American Hospi- tal Association. Burke was named interim president of St. Francis in May 2020, at the height of the first wave of the pandemic. After a national search, he was named permanent president by that November. The onset of the pandemic prompted St. Francis and Trinity to invest aggres- sively in telehealth, transforming its care model and committing to hiring "virtualists" to treat patients online. Upgrading physical facilities has also been a focus, with St. Francis opening a new $26.5 million outpatient ortho- pedic and spine surgery center on its Hartford campus and an ambulatory care center in Rocky Hill. Burke will also be overseeing a multiyear, multimillion-dollar campus improvement plan in the years ahead. DR. MANISHA JUTHANI The Department of Public Health (DPH) is often an agency that gets overlooked in state government. But not during a pandemic. Dr. Manisha Juthani had the difficult task of taking over the agency while COVID-19 still remains a threat to public health. Juthani was nominated as DPH commissioner in July 2021 by Gov. Ned Lamont, a position she took over from Deidre Gifford, who was interim commissioner throughout most of the pandemic. Juthani has been an infectious-dis- eases physician at Yale School of Medicine in New Haven, specializing in the diagnosis, management and pre- vention of infections in older adults. Her most recent area of interest has been at the intersection of infectious diseases and palliative care, including the role of antibiotics at the end of life. She completed her undergraduate training at the University of Pennsyl- vania, attended Cornell University Medical College, completed residency training at New York-Presbyterian Jeffrey Flaks Bimal Patel Thomas Burke Montez Carter Dr. Manisha Juthani Spotlighting healthcare industry power players A s we continue to emerge from the pandemic it would seem hospitals and other care providers could begin to return to a sense of normalcy. However, hospitals continue to treat COVID-19 patients and are facing significant other challenges borne out of the pandemic. Whether it's labor shortages, supply chain disruptions , in- flation, competitive challenges or even a mental healthcare crisis, numerous factors are creating financial and other pressures on healthcare orga- nizations. It will take strong leadership to continue to get through these challenging times. In this week's issue, Hartford Business Journal is publish- ing its third annual Power 25 Health Care list, which iden- tifies leaders who have had a significant impact on the industry and public health. This isn't an awards section. HBJ's Power 25 Health Care class was chosen by HBJ's news team. To make the list, individuals must not only be in a position of power, they need to wield it in such a way to have an outsize impact on the community. The rankings include a mix of established players as well as some fresh faces to our region. We're curious to know what you think. Feel free to send feedback. Power 25 Health Care will be back next year with some new names and fresh faces, so be prepared to make suggestions. Greg Bordonaro Editor gbordonaro@hartfordbusiness.com HARTFORD BUSINESS JOURNAL

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