Courtesy of WLEA radio-
HORNELL, NY – Statement From St. James Hospital:
The St. James Mercy Hospital Board of Directors today announced the appointment of Leo P. Brideau as Interim President and CEO of St. James Mercy Hospital, replacing Jennifer L. Sullivan, who had served as the hospital’s CEO since 2013. The hospital also announced the departure of Stan Konopko, who had served as Chief Financial Officer since 2013.
“The Board is deeply grateful for Sullivan’s and Konopko’s leadership, dedication and hard work,” said Board Chair Susan Gray. “In their time at the helm of the organization, they fought to preserve St. James Mercy as a viable community institution, and to pave the way for both our planned affiliation with UR Medicine and the new St. James Mercy Hospital and Hornell Medical Village. We as a board, and the entire community of Hornell, wish them well in their future endeavors.”
Since 2015, St. James has partnered with UR Medicine under an administrative services agreement that has brought new health services to Hornell including primary care, gastroenterology, imaging, orthopedics, otolaryngology and vascular surgery. Last year the hospital welcomed a Chief Medical Officer from UR Medicine, Dr. Bilal Ahmed, who leads quality improvement initiatives and helps recruit physicians to the Hornell area. Gray said the hospital will continue to expand services and improve patient care, and that construction of the new Hornell Medical Village will move forward without interruption.
Brideau, a veteran hospital administrator who has supported St. James Mercy on behalf of UR Medicine for nearly three years, is a familiar face at St. James Mercy, because he has served as UR Medicine’s primary administrative liaison under the administrative services agreement. He has served previously as CEO and President of Ascension Health Care Network Inc., a national Catholic health system based in St. Louis; President and CEO of Columbia St. Mary’s Health System in Milwaukee; and President and CEO of Strong Memorial Hospital in Rochester.
“It has been a privilege for me to work with the leadership and staff of St. James Mercy over the past two years,” Brideau said. “I look forward to helping the hospital continue its path of growth and renewal as it officially joins the UR Medicine system and makes a transition to new permanent leadership.”
Gray said the Board will work with UR Medicine to recruit a new CEO and financial management leadership in the near future.
About St. James Mercy Hospital and the Hornell Medical Village
St. James Mercy Hospital was founded in 1890 and now provides a full range of inpatient and outpatient services, including emergency, acute medical and surgical, imaging, and laboratory. Specialty services include orthopedics, general surgery, physical therapy, Express Care, mammography, digital imaging, a Coumadin clinic, cardiac and pulmonary rehabilitation, and a personal emergency response system called MercyLine. The Hospital works on an ongoing basis to build collaborative relationships with a host of regional partners, in order to ensure the continued continuity of critical health care services in the Hornell community. Working with UR Medicine, St. James was able to secure $62.8 million from New York State for construction of a new hospital and an electronic medical record (EMR) system. Scheduled for completion in 2019, the new hospital will include 15 inpatient beds; a surgical suite with two operating rooms, two procedure rooms and 15 pre- and post-surgery beds; an Emergency Department with eight treatment rooms and four observation beds; Imaging services; and cardiac rehab. An adjacent medical office building will include outpatient specialty clinics, physical therapy and Express Care.
