Ovation Healthcare Learning Institute Podcast

Brandy is a seasoned healthcare professional with over 15 years of dedicated experience in Revenue Cycle management. Her career journey commenced with spearheading transformative initiatives within large healthcare organizations, focusing on optimizing operations for newly acquired facilities. She played a pivotal role in pioneering the establishment of Central Business Office models. Throughout her journey, Brandy has consistently been at the forefront of driving operational excellence, leveraging her strategic insights and innovative solutions to propel healthcare organizations towards greater efficiency and success. Presently, Brandy leads a dynamic transformation team that consults both internally and externally, aiming to revolutionize healthcare practices.

Experienced knowledge with various EMRs, Epic, Cerner, Allscripts, Soarian, CPSI, Medhost, Meditech.

Brittany is a healthcare leader with nearly 20 years of experience and a background in strategic sourcing, finance, customer service, portfolio management, as well as acute care experience.

She has a passion for connecting, developing and empowering teams, while maintaining a strong focus on quality results that will positively impact patient care and the clients and communities they serve. Prior to Ovation Healthcare, Brittany held a number of leadership roles at HealthTrust where she oversaw strategic sourcing, PPE categories and medical capital equipment.

Bruce Shepard serves as Executive Strategic Advisor for Ovation Healthcare, bringing 35 years of experience and leadership that spans value-based care development, hospital and health system operations, relationship and people development, business development, and innovation.

Knox Community Hospital’s Chief Nursing Officer

Casey brings 20 years of experience in the healthcare industry as a financial transformation leader. He has extensive experience guiding hospitals, health systems and provider groups through the intersection of technology and operations, leveraging systems and frameworks to improve overall financial outcomes. As the overseer of revenue cycle transformation and optimization, Casey is responsible for positioning organizations to reach their strategic, operational and financial goals through transformational revenue cycle management activities.

Chip Holmes serves as Executive Vice President, Octave. Chip has more than 30 years of progressive executive healthcare experience and a strong track record for leading Hospitals and Health Systems, Governance and Leadership Teams in and through effective transformational strategy development and execution. Chip has served in small and large not-for-profit and for-profit facilities and their respective health care systems in both rural and urban settings. Chip provides oversight and support for more than 20 Ovation Healthcare hospitals, is an American College of Health Executives Fellow, and received the ACHE Robert S. Hudgens Memorial Award for Young Healthcare Executive of the Year in 2005.

Chris Little is VP of Pharmacy for Ovation Healthcare joining the team in 2023.  Chris is a graduate of Drake University with a Doctor of Pharmacy degree and completed a Pharmacy Practice Residency (PGY1) at Edward Hines Jr. VA Hospital and a specialized residency in Health System Pharmacy Practice Administration (PGY2) at the Jesse Brown VA Medical Center.  Prior to joining the Ovation team, Chris served as the Senior Director for Pharmacy Innovation at HealthTrust and was Executive Director of Clinical services for ROi.  He has served in roles including Clinical Coordinator, Pharmacy Director and Associate Chief for Pharmacy Operations in both the private and federal sectors.

Path of Hope Foundation

Knox Community Hospital’s Chief Financial Officer

Executive Director, New England Collaborative Health Network 

Program Manager for Ovation Healthcare’s Learning Institute

Dennis O. Rookwood, Jr., MBA, PMP, is a highly accomplished finance leader with a remarkable track record in driving profitability, enhancing operational effectiveness, and fostering accountability within organizations. With extensive experience, Dennis brings an innovative approach to problem-solving, data analysis, and effective communication with senior leaders. He is renowned for his strategic dedication, consistently focused on value creation and meticulous execution.

Chief Executive Officer

Growing up in a small community in South Carolina, Dwayne learned the meaning of caring for and serving communities from an early age. From his days in little league sports to serving in several countries during his college days, his passion for helping people has been his driving force. Dwayne’s vision to bring a shared service approach to community healthcare formed many years ago during his time in a front row seat at the largest health system. That vision became a reality in Ovation Healthcare. Dwayne officially began the journey to Ovation Healthcare when it was established as an independent company in 2021. Early in his career, he earned business degrees including his MBA and Doctorate in Business. He lives in Nashville with his wife and is the proud parent of two married sons and a granddaughter, Blakely, who is his pride and joy. He currently sits on the boards of numerous organizations. 

President / Chief Executive Officer at Huron Regional Medical Center

Erika Sundrud has 20+ years of experience in healthcare with a primary focus in quality, regulatory and care delivery. With a master’s degree in industrial/organizational psychology, Master Black Belt in Lean and Six Sigma, and Certified Professional in Healthcare Quality (CPHQ) certification, Erika expertly designs and improves upon care variation across the continuum of healthcare. She has extensive knowledge in developing and leading large projects focused on improving the patient care experience and transitions in care, while stabilizing per capita cost.

An authority on improving quality at community hospitals and healthcare systems alike, Erika advises providers throughout the U.S. She is a frequent speaker at major healthcare conferences on quality improvement, as well as a system Lean and Six Sigma expert and advocate for implementing positive change.

Gina Lehman is a Senior Consultant serving in the Clinical Services division of Ovation Healthcare. She brings over 25 years of experience in clinical, leadership, & advisory roles in healthcare, and possesses a strong background in strategic organizational development, program & process improvement, patient experience consulting, & operational oversight. 

Ginnie is a thoughtful and experienced strategist dedicated to helping identify and navigate the ever-changing waters facing independent community hospitals today. She brings a fresh perspective and looks for novel ways organizations can remain resilient and relevant through the challenges they face.

With over 5 years of experience in data analytics and market analysis, Ginnie has been able to help organizations better understand their current landscape and develop actionable strategies that allow clients to drive their organizational mission and vision forward in a sustainable way. Her experience spans healthcare finance, strategic planning, and medical staff development planning, allowing Ginnie to provide focused, data-driven insight on how organizations can improve the delivery of healthcare through innovation and collaborative thinking.

Hailey brings 10 years of healthcare leadership, sales, business development, marketing, and product development experience to the organization. Most of Hailey’s career has been focused on bringing innovative solutions and services to the healthcare industry. Prior to joining Ovation, Hailey worked in the building technology industry to bring smart building solutions to new hospitals, medical office buildings, life sciences, and laboratories. Hailey also spent 8 years at DeRoyal Industries where she led sales for their Continuum platform, an operating room software and hardware solution. In these roles, Hailey has worked closely with organizations across the industry including notable hospitals, large healthcare systems, provider groups, and GPOs.

Hailey has an MBA and a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Management and Marketing from the University of Tennessee. She is also a member of Women in Healthcare and the Nashville Healthcare Council.

With 40 years in healthcare operations and finance, Herb’s professional experience began as a Manager and Staff Accountant, CPA at one of the nation’s largest Public Accounting Firms in the 1980s and early 1990s serving a wide array of clients including hospitals, nursing homes, home health agencies, health departments and physician practices.

Janet is President and Founder of Delta Blvd. She coaches executives, business owners, and entrepreneurs in the areas of strategy, leadership development, and professional growth. Janet has more than thirty years experience in finance and operations including roles as Chief Financial Officer and Vice President of Operations. Janet received a B.B.A. in Accounting and a M.Ed. in Learning and Organizational Change from Belmont University. She serves as an Adjunct Professor at Vanderbilt University and is a Leadership Development Coach at Vanderbilt University’s Owen Graduate School of Management. Janet is President of Impact100 Nashville, a women’s giving circle that grants impactful $100,000 grants to Middle TN nonprofits. In her free time Janet enjoys hiking, yoga, and adventurous travel. Janet and her husband of 43 years live in Franklin, TN and have two adult children and five amazing grand children!

Jessica has over 24 years of experience in healthcare as a registered nurse. She has worked in several roles throughout her career, including critical care, emergency department, clinical research, trauma education, and performance improvement. As director, she serves as a leader in commercial operations and business optimization, focusing on technology and data-driven solutions to enhance workforce efficiency. Jessica started her nursing career at the University of Maryland Medical Center in Baltimore, Maryland, and then at Atrium Health in Charlotte, North Carolina. She has been working in performance improvement consulting since 2017 and has worked with both large and small organizations, supporting projects and providing leadership and subject matter expertise in workflow optimization, throughput improvement, improving care coordination, cost reduction strategies, and nursing care standardization. 

Experienced Nurse Leader in rural, community and large academic health systems with a broad skill set in a variety of areas such as operations, education, quality, patient and employee engagement and strategic planning.

As the President of Technology Services, John Mason brings over thirty years of progressive leadership and technology experience to clients. In previous roles, John was responsible for delivering a wide array of competitive advantage, technology-enabled, patient-centric business, clinical and facility solutions to the rural market, as well as the large, Integrated Delivery Network. John continues to establish a collaborative and empowering environment and plays a key role in driving change in the Health IT landscape.

John actively conducts cost report and reimbursement improvement studies as well as multiple other projects. John develops and presents reimbursement education programs including seminars and regulatory update webinars through The Learning Institute for purposes of supporting existing Ovation Healthcare customers, as well as others within the health care industry. His consultations help hospital systems improve financial performance via improved reimbursements and adopt to value-based purchasing models initiated by the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.

Chief Executive Officer at Copley Hospital

Josh Sandler currently leads Elevate Supply and Expanse Management Solutions, a division of Ovation Healthcare. In his role, he has responsibility for supply operations, strategic sourcing, pharmacy optimization, account management, and other expense management solutions, such as workforce optimization, benefits programs, capital lifecycle management and facilities across Elevate’s 170 members with over 900 locations. Prior to this role, Josh was a Vice President of Strategic Sourcing at HealthTrust, and held various other roles at ROi, most recently Vice President of Strategic Sourcing, prior to HealthTrust’s acquisition of ROi. Before starting in healthcare, Josh was a Naval Officer, doing multiple deployments to the Persian Gulf

Kathleen is an experienced professional within the healthcare industry. She has a background in legal as well as strategic sourcing and customer service.

Kathleen previously was a contracts manager on the capital equipment team at HealthTrust where she was responsible for a range of categories in radiology, radiation oncology and nursing equipment.

Prior to her time at HealthTrust, Kathleen worked at Horace Mann Life Insurance Company where she managed new and existing life insurance and annuity products to ensure compliance with state and federal laws which included maintaining language in existing products and developing and writing new products.

Kathleen received her bachelor’s degree from the University of Massachusetts in Amherst and her law degree from Southern Illinois University School of Law with a specialization in Intellectual Property Law.

Chief Clinical Officer at Cody Regional Health

Kelly’s professional foundation in health information management promptly expanded into leadership roles in managing the healthcare revenue cycle. Beyond overseeing a global revenue cycle delivery team, she has served as a hospital administrator, spearheading quality and training initiatives through a full end-to-end EHR implementation as well as successful oversite of regulatory and compliance areas with numerous successful JCAHO surveys, highlighted with a zero-finding survey. 

Consistently recognized as a key leader, Kelly excels in integrating the clinical operations, revenue cycle, and technology teams of the facilities served, providing a multi-disciplinary focus on improving efficiency through technology while maintaining financial stability. Kelly is passionate about fostering strategic client partnerships through the journey of digital transformation, ensuring high-quality outcomes.

With over 30 years of dedicated expertise in the field of information security and cybersecurity, Ken has demonstrated an unwavering commitment to safeguarding digital landscapes in an ever-evolving technological era. As a seasoned executive, his operational acumen spans across the global landscape, providing organizations with the essential shield against digital threats. Throughout Ken’s career, he has consistently delivered solutions that marry state-of-the-art technology with strategic foresight. Ken’s unwavering commitment to enhancing security measures and fostering a cyber-resilient environment has made him a trusted leader in the information security and cybersecurity industry.

Kendall Gemmill serves as Ovation Healthcare’s Vice President of Marketing. Kendall brings more than 15 years of marketing experience and nearly a decade within the healthcare sector. Kendall leads a talented team in execution of brand recognition, content, and digital channel strategy, and collaborates with business development in deploying demand generation tactics. She is passionate about corporate storytelling and furthering Ovation’s mission of strengthening independent healthcare. Kendall also serves on the board for the OvationCares Foundation, Ovation’s charitable arm dedicated to improving health outcomes in the communities it serves.

Dr. Kristine Keefer Wolff is a Healthcare Executive with 25+ years of system and business unit level health care experience with a history of creating and improving workplace culture, employee engagement and patient outcomes. She is known as a transformational leader skilled at relationship building with internal and external partners. Kristine is board certified from the American Nurses Credentialing Center as a Nurse Executive-Advanced, and attended the University of Pittsburgh for her Bachelor, Master and Doctorate degrees in Nursing. Kristine is a member of the American College of Healthcare Executives and the American Organization of Nurse Leaders.

Kylie is an experienced Project Manager with a background in public health and a deep commitment to enhancing rural healthcare. With a wealth of experience working alongside hospitals and healthcare organizations across the country, she has expertise in streamlining organizational processes, fostering cross-functional collaboration, and driving strategic initiatives that create measurable impact. In her current role on the Performance Optimization team, she leads projects that enhance the Ovation client experience, support the implementation of strategic initiatives, and establish seamless coordination across different workstreams.

Huron Regional Medical Center’s CFO

Scott has over 15 years of expertise in revenue cycle management. He started his career with Athenahealth and Nexus Healthcare solutions focused on building tech-enabled RCM services coupled with offshore capabilities to help the businesses scale. At McKinsey & Company he advised national health systems and RCM service providers on large-scale operational transformations and performance improvement programs focused on yield improvement and cost reduction. Most recently at Acclara, he led all RCM services, transformation, and integration across the Enterprise. He lives in Los Angeles with his wife and daughter. He’s excited to be part of Ovation Healthcare and lead the Amplify RCM and Managed Care team as it focuses on its next phase of growth and improving the financial health of its trusted partners.

Volunteer Services Coordinator at Gritman Medical Center

Wanda has over 20 years of experience in a healthcare environment, with expertise in Managed Care contracting. She has extensive experience from both the provider and payer settings and has proficiency in all payment models including capitation, fee for service, Exchange Products, Government based products, and Quality Incentive/Fee for Value Programs. Wanda has a successful record designing and implementing effective managed care strategies and advising health systems through negotiations resulting in improved contract administration and yields. Her experience also includes negotiating contracts with hospitals and physicians for nationwide insurance companies.