Mt Ascutney Hospital and Health Center (MAHHC) is pleased to announce that Leesa Taft, APN has been appointed to the position of Associate Medical Director, effective Sunday, September 24, 2017. In this newly created role, Taft will serve as a member of the Primary Care management team and clinical team leader for Internal Medicine at the Windsor practice. She will also oversee clinical practice for nurse practitioners and physician assistants, in addition to continuing her role as a primary care provider.
According to Paul Calandrella, MAHHC Chief Operating Officer, as Associate Medical Director, Taft will focus on quality and implementation of team-based care across primary care practice sites in Windsor and at the Ottauquechee Health Center in Woodstock. “Leesa is not only a great clinician, she has demonstrated that she is a strong leader who understands the value of collaboration to improve outcomes and overall satisfaction for our patients,” said Calandrella. “As team-based primary care continues to positively transform the health care experience for our patients, Leesa will lead the way, ensuring high clinical quality and effective communication.”
Taft is a veteran of the United States Air Force, and worked as a pediatric nurse at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center as well as a Nursing Supervisor at MAHHC. She received her MSN in 2005 from the University of New Hampshire (UNH), graduating summa cum laude, and became board certified as a Family Nurse Practitioner. Prior to attaining her new position, she served as Assistant Medical Director in the MAHHC outpatient Primary Care Practice and the MAHHC Geriatric Community Program. She is currently a candidate for a Doctor of Nursing Practice, at UNH with an anticipated graduation in 2018. She is a three-decade resident of Windsor, Vermont, where she lives with her husband and four children.
About Mt Ascutney Hospital and Health Center
Founded in 1933, Mt Ascutney Hospital and Health Center (MAHHC) is a not-for-profit community hospital network in Vermont including the critical access-designated Mt Ascutney Hospital and Historic Homes of Runnemede, a senior residential care campus, in Windsor, as well as the Ottauquechee Health Center in Woodstock. Affiliated with the Dartmouth-Hitchcock Health System, MAHHC provides primary care and a comprehensive suite of specialty services, along with 25 inpatient beds, a therapeutic pool and an acclaimed, fully modernized 10-bed Acute Rehabilitation Center. Mt Ascutney Hospital and Health Center is dedicated to improving the lives of those it serves and is at the hub of a wide network of community resources that have partnered to cover gaps in services, and improve overall population health. One of the largest employers in the area, MAHHC acknowledges its employees as its greatest asset and has been recognized by the Governor’s Office with an Excellence in Worksite Wellness award.
Mt Ascutney Hospital and Health Center is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities (CARF), is a recent recipient of Best Practice recognition by the National Rural Health Association (NRHA) for health care quality, and is recognized by the American Hospital Association (AHA) as one of the “Most Wired” hospitals for integration of technology to boost clinical performance. The National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) has awarded MAHHC with Level 3 status, the highest level of medical home designation.