The Admired, Longtime Hoag Leader Assumes Top Spot from Dr. Richard Afable, Who Now Heads New Covenant Health Network
Newport Beach, Calif. (March 1, 2013) — Hoag Memorial Hospital Presbyterian today named Robert Braithwaite president
and chief executive officer of the renowned network of hospitals and community-based
health care centers throughout Orange County.
Braithwaite, who joined Hoag in 1992 and most recently served as its chief
operating officer, succeeds Dr. Richard Afable as president and CEO. Afable
was named president and CEO of Covenant Health Network, an affiliation
between Hoag and St. Joseph Health created to serve as a regional and
national model for the future of health-care service delivery, affordability
and accessibility.
“I now fully understand the saying, ‘I’m at a loss for
words,’ because it’s difficult to express what a profound
privilege it is to be given this opportunity,” Braithwaite said.
“I have the deepest respect and admiration for the skilled men and
women at Hoag who have dedicated their lives to the community’s
health and well-being.”
Braithwaite continued: “More than 60 years ago, George and Grace
Hoag saw a major need for a community
hospital in Orange County founded on a commitment to superior, compassion-driven health care. Their
legacy continues today with every life we touch. As Hoag looks to its
next 60 years, I am honored to be able to spend my days working with talented
individuals whose shared goal is to improve the lives of others.”
“We could not have hoped for a more qualified and capable leader
than Robert Braithwaite as Hoag begins its next exciting chapter of serving
the community,” said Gary McKitterick, chair of the Board of Directors
and a long-standing member of its Executive Committee. “During his
long service here, Robert has established a well-deserved reputation as
an innovative administrator whose passion and devotion to our mission
have played an integral role in Hoag’s national renown. He is widely
respected among Hoag’s medical teams, administrators and staff,
and he has the Board’s full support and best wishes.”
Braithwaite joined Hoag in 1992 as administrative resident. Throughout
his tenure, he has served in key management positions for Hoag’s
network of hospitals and community urgent care centers including as chief
administrator for Hoag Irvine, which opened in September 2010. From 2009
until his appointment as president and CEO Braithwaite was chief operating
officer of Hoag’s entire health care network.
Braithwaite said Hoag’s focus will continue to be on providing outstanding
community health care services that benefit from the latest medical and
technological advances. Hoag is known for its leadership role in pioneering
new procedures, and that commitment will continue through the hospital’s
strong support of its physician network, he said.
Braithwaite said another key priority in the coming months is an aggressive
expansion of Hoag’s community-based
urgent care centers. “As health care professionals, we need to take our services deep
into the community where they are needed most and where, far too often,
they are beyond the reach of many of Orange County’s underserved
residents,” he said.
Hoag’s historic affiliation with St. Joseph Health – approved
by the California Office of the Attorney General and both hospitals’
boards of directors in late February – lays the foundation for an
unprecedented chapter in Hoag’s history, Braithwaite said.
“We are building upon a six-decade legacy of excellence, and the
creation of Covenant Health Network combines the unique strengths of two
of California’s best medical institutions. Looking ahead, there
will be no interruption whatsoever in Hoag’s forward trajectory.
Just the opposite, the affiliation sets the stage for advancements in
health care programs and methods of delivery that we couldn’t even
dream were possible just a few years ago.”
About Hoag Memorial Hospital Presbyterian
Hoag is an approximately $1 billion nonprofit, regional health care delivery
network in Orange County, California, that treats nearly 30,000 inpatients
and 350,000 outpatients annually. Hoag consists of two acute-care hospitals,
seven health centers, and five urgent care centers. Hoag Hospital Newport
Beach, which has served Orange County since 1952, and Hoag Hospital Irvine,
which opened in 2010, are designated Magnet hospitals by the American
Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC). Hoag offers a comprehensive blend
of health care services that includes five institutes providing specialized
services in the following areas:
cancer,
heart and vascular,
neurosciences,
women’s health, and orthopedics through Hoag’s affiliate,
Hoag Orthopedic Institute. Hoag has been named one of the Best Regional Hospitals in the U.S. News
& World Report Metro Edition. National Research Corporation has endorsed
Hoag as Orange County’s most preferred hospital for the past 16
consecutive years and, for an unprecedented 16 years, residents of Orange
County have chosen Hoag as the county’s best hospital in a local
newspaper survey. Visit
www.hoag.org for more information.