Vermont Business Magazine Dan Bennett has been named president and chief executive officer at Gifford Health Care in Randolph. He brings 17 years of leadership experience in small community healthcare organizations, most recently as chief operating officer at Waldo County Healthcare in Belfast, Maine, a position he held for eight years. Prior to that he was executive director and chief financial officer at the Mid-Coast Mental Health Center in Rockland, Maine. Bennett, who will start at Gifford on October 3, 2016, rose to the top of the candidate pool early in a national search that began after Joseph Woodin’s departure in April.
Dan Bennett
“During the search process it became clear that Dan is a great listener and collaborative leader, with the vision and management skills required to maintain a positive organizational culture, fulfill strategic goals, and effectively pursue new opportunities,” Gifford Board Chair Gus Meyer wrote in an announcement to staff. “We are convinced that he has the qualities we need to keep Gifford moving forward as the highly successful, innovative, independent organization we have come to know and expect.”
Bennett worked briefly in Gifford’s Accounting Department after graduating with a BS in Accounting from St. Michaels College in 1991. He moved to a management position at Mt. Ascutney Hospital in Windsor, VT, and received a Masters of Business Administration from the University of New Hampshire in 2000. He has worked and lived in Maine for the last 16 years.
Returning to Randolph after 24 years, Bennett found the growth and improvements at Gifford impressive, but not surprising.
“Innovation has always been part of the culture here,” he said. “Gifford continuously looks at what is coming next and then builds out its services to meet that need. The recent Federally Qualified Health Center designation and integration of dental and behavioral health into primary care are examples of this creative positioning. The organization is in wonderful shape.”
Several recent Gifford initiatives are similar to programs Bennett has worked on in Maine: he successfully implemented an electronic health records system at Waldo, developed programs to increase healthcare access to uninsured and underserved populations, and created the only hospital-based oral health program in Maine.
Bennett grew up in Brandon, Vermont and while at Gifford met his wife Jane (who was the hospital’s dietitian for five years). The couple’s now 20-year-old son Nick was born in Gifford’s Birthing Center. He says the strong relationships they developed during that time, both at work and in the community, inspired him to pursue a career in rural healthcare organization.
“I saw how many opportunities there are to interact with people at a small hospital, and how important it is to develop a relationship with the community,” he said. “The fact that you are caring for your neighbors adds meaning to your work. This resonated with me then, and it still does today.”
Gifford is a community hospital in Randolph, Vt., with family health centers in Berlin, Bethel, Chelsea, and Rochester and specialty services throughout central Vermont. A Federally Qualified Health Center and a Top 100 Critical Access Hospital in the country, Gifford is a full-service hospital with a 24-hour emergency department; inpatient and rehabilitation units; many surgical services; accredited cancer program; a day care; two adult day programs; and the 30-bed Menig Nursing Home, which was named by U.S. News and World Report as one of the best 39 nursing homes in the country in 2012. The Birthing Center, established in 1977, was the first in Vermont to offer an alternative to the traditional hospital-based deliveries, and continues to be a leader in midwifery and family-centered care. The cancer program is accredited by the Commission on Cancer of the American College of Surgeons. The hospital’s mission is to improve individuals’ and community health by providing and assuring access to affordable, high-quality health care in Gifford’s service area.
Source: Gifford 8.10.2016
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