Major Gift

· San Diego area builder Douglas Barnhart and wife Nancy donated $1 million toward Sharp Chula Vista Medical Center's 45,000-square-foot cancer treatment facility. The $36 million Douglas & Nancy Barnhart Cancer Center will open to patients in late summer.

Appointments

· William Haugh became chief executive officer of LifePoint's Georgetown (Ky.) Community Hospital in July. LifePoint's Vaughan Regional Medical Center in Salem, Ala., named David Sirk permanent CEO. He had been interim CEO since May 1. Haugh had been CEO of LifePoint's Logan Memorial Hospital in Russellville, Ky., since September 2009. Sirk was CEO of One80 Interim Inc. of Cincinnati, an interim management and consulting services company he formed in 2007.

· Darcy Craven was named permanent CEO of Carolinas Hospital System, Florence, S.C. Craven was interim CEO while also continuing his role as chief operating officer at the hospital. He replaces James O'Loughlin, who left in February to become chief executive of Memorial Hospital in Jacksonville, Fla.

· Lynn Mergen became CEO of Mineral Area Regional Medical Center, Farmington, Mo, on Aug. 1. Mergen was COO of TMC Inc. Mineral Area Regional Medical Center is part of Capella Healthcare, Franklin, Tenn.

· Beth Tharp, R.N., was appointed president and CEO at Community Hospital Anderson (Ind.). She will succeed Bill VanNess, M.D., when he retires later this year. VanNess announced his retirement in October 2011 after 39 years of service, having been named CEO of the hospital in 1997. Tharp currently is vice president of patient care services and chief nursing officer at Community Anderson. She worked her entire 32-year nursing career at the Madison County hospital.

· John G. Hill became CEO of PeaceHealth's Oregon Region in May. Hill was the CEO of the Medical Center of Aurora and Centennial Medical Plaza, near Denver.

· LHP Hospital Group Inc. and Hackensack University Medical Center in July appointed Chad Melton CEO of HackensackUMC at Pascack Valley. HackensackUMC and LHP formed a joint venture in 2009 to reopen the former Pascack Valley Hospital in Westwood, N.J., which closed in April 2008. The renamed facility will open in summer 2013. Melton was division director of operations for LHP Hospital Group Inc., Dallas.

· Timothy J. Babineau, M.D., becomes president and CEO of Lifespan, Providence, R.I., on Aug. 15. Babineau, who was president and CEO of Rhode Island Hospital and the Miriam Hospital, succeeds George A. Vecchione, who announced in October 2011 that he would be leaving Lifespan later this year after 13 years at the helm.

· Edward F. Funai, M.D., was appointed chief operating officer of the Ohio State University Health System in Columbus. He was associate dean for administration in OSU's College of Medicine, professor and vice chair of the department of obstetrics and gynecology, and director of Ohio State's Dvision of Maternal Fetal Medicine. He retains the associate dean position in addition to his new role.

· Chad Schaeffer was named executive director of the Edwards Comprehensive Cancer Center at Cabell Huntington (W.Va.) Hospital. Previously, Schaeffer was CEO of Comprehensive Cancer Consulting LLC.

· David Mast was appointed regional chief financial officer of Providence Health & Services, Los Angeles. Mast began his career at Providence as director of financial services and controller for the Valley Service Area.

· Anne F. Strassfeld joined Saint Luke's Health System, Kansas City, Mo., as senior vice president, general counsel on July 23. Strassfeld was associate general counsel of University Hospitals Health System in Cleveland.

· Pete November was named general counsel and senior vice president of corporate compliance for Ochsner Health System in New Orleans. November's most recent role was executive vice president, general counsel, secretary and director of acquisitions for LHC Group Inc., headquartered in Lafayette, La.

· Steven Eller became vice president and chief human resources officer of Beacon Health System, which includes Elkhart General Hospital and Memorial Hospital of South Bend, Ind., on July 16. He was vice president of human resources at Robert Bosch LLC, an automotive, consumer goods, industrial technology and health care telemedicine company in Farmington Hills, Mich.

· South Nassau Communities Hospital, Oceanside, N.Y., named Joanne Newcombe, R.N., vice president of patient care services. She was associate executive director for patient care services and chief nursing officer of the 249-bed Stern Family Center for Extended Care and Rehabilitation in Manhasset, N.Y.

· The Greater Hudson Valley Health System, Middletown N.Y., appointed John Lynch chief information officer and vice president of information technology. He was system vice president and chief information officer of Provena Health in Mokena, Ill.

· LakePointe Health Network, Rowlett, Texas, named Patti Gilliano, R.N., chief nursing officer. Prior to joining LPHN, she was administrative director of surgical services and pediatric short stay at St. Mary's Medical Center in West Palm Beach, Fla.

Retirement

· Steven P. Boyle, chief executive officer of St. Peter's Health Partners, Albany, N.Y., will retire Oct. 1. Boyle has spent 24 years in executive leadership at St. Peter's. In October 2011, he became CEO of St. Peter's Health Partners, northeastern New York's largest health care system formed by the merger of three smaller regional systems: St. Peter's Health Care Services, Northeast Health and Seton Health. Boyle was the first CEO to run the newly merged SPHP with more than 11,700 employees at more than 125 locations across seven counties and an annual budget of nearly $1.1 billion. Previously, Boyle had been president and CEO of St. Peter's Hospital since 1993, and president and CEO of St. Peter's Health Care Services since 1994. He joined St. Peter's Hospital in 1988 as COO.

· Thomas C. Dolan, president and CEO of the American College of Healthcare Executives, announced plans to retire May 10, 2013, at which time he will become president emeritus. Dolan began at ACHE in 1986 and was appointed president and CEO in 1991. During his tenure, ACHE grew to more than 40,000 members throughout the United States and 73 countries, and developed 81 chapters throughout the United States, Canada, Mexico and countries overseas.

· Georgia Hospital Association President and CEO Joseph Parker will retire June 30, 2013, after 27 years. Parker joined GHA as director of financial services in 1978 after an eight-year stint in the financial department of Georgia Baptist Hospital in Atlanta. He received the 2002 AHA Trustee Award and two years later helped craft the association's Health for Life national health care reform platform as a member of the AHA board of trustees. "Joe has been an extraordinary leader for hospitals, both in Georgia and nationally," says AHA President and CEO Rich Umbdenstock. "His leadership exemplifies the power of collaboration and commitment. He has helped Georgia hospitals set a strong agenda built around obtaining access and coverage for more people, measuring and improving quality and building public trust and confidence."

Award

· The National Center for Healthcare Leadership, a not-for-profit that works to improve population health by enhancing the capacity of health care leaders, named Mitchell H. Katz, M.D., director of the Los Angeles County Department of Health Services, and Margaret E. O'Kane, president of the National Committee for Quality Assurance, as co-recipients of its 2012 Gail L. Warden Leadership Excellence Award. Katz was recognized for his commitment to public health and underserved populations in both San Francisco and Los Angeles where he created coordinated care systems that have improved the delivery and quality of health care while reducing cost. O'Kane, who launched the NCQA in 1990, is credited with fostering an evidence-based health care system focused on the wide dissemination of best practices toward the goals of saving millions of lives and billions of dollars in wasted or ineffective care. They will be honored Nov. 13 at an awards dinner in Chicago.

Acquisitions, Affiliations

· A joint venture between LHP Hospital Group Inc., Plano, Texas, and Hackensack (N.J.) University Health Network received state approval to acquire Mountainside Hospital, a 365-bed facility in Montclair, N.J.

· Hackensack University Health Network also signed an affiliation agreement with Palisades Medical Center, North Bergen, N.J., to collaborate and expand clinical programs and services in Hudson and southern Bergen County. Under the agreement, Hackensack University Medical Center's clinical resources will support Palisades' existing programs, while also enhancing the overall level of diagnostics, treatment and technology. Hackensack University Medical Center also committed to expanding the availability of physicians and to supporting additional specialty care programs.

· The Marquette (Mich.) General Health System board of trustees signed a definitive agreement for Marquette General to be acquired by Duke LifePoint Healthcare, Brentwood, Tenn. The agreement is subject to review by the attorney general of Michigan. Funds from the acquisition transaction will be used to eliminate Marquette General's debt and fund its pension program. All remaining proceeds will be used to fund a community foundation that will support health care organizations and initiatives in Michigan's Upper Peninsula. Under the terms of the agreement, Duke LifePoint has committed to investing in physician recruitment and capital improvement projects.

· SSM Health Care acquired Unity Health Center on June 30. The facility, renamed St. Anthony Shawnee Hospital, is now part of SSM Health Care Oklahoma. Terms of the transaction will not be disclosed. Unity Health Center is a 114-bed facility with approximately 60 physicians and 550 health care professionals that has been serving the health care needs of the Shawnee, Okla., community since 1964. Prior to the agreement with SSM, the hospital was locally owned and operated by Community Health Partners Inc., a not-for-profit corporation governed by a 15-member board of directors.

· LifePoint Hospitals acquired Woods Memorial Hospital, Etowah, Tenn. It includes a 72-bed hospital and 88-bed nursing home and becomes LifePoint's 11th facility in Tennessee. The terms of the agreement were not disclosed. As part of the acquisition, Woods will partner with Athens Regional Medical Center to strengthen regional health care delivery. The hospitals, which are located just 12 miles apart, will join forces and operate as part of a common system, sharing resources and coordinating their services.

· Community Health Systems Inc., Franklin, Tenn., acquired substantially all of the assets of Memorial Health Systems in York, Pa. The system includes 100-bed Memorial Hospital, the Surgical Center of York and other outpatient and ancillary services. Memorial Hospital becomes the 17th hospital in Pennsylvania affiliated with Community Health Systems Inc. The purchase agreement includes a commitment to construct a replacement hospital within five years of the closing date.

· Capella Healthcare, Franklin, Tenn., completed the acquisition of Muskogee Regional Medical Center and Muskogee Community Hospital on July 1. Both hospitals are located in Muskogee, Okla. The acquisition will unite the hospitals into a comprehensive health system. Capella has operated Muskogee Regional Medical Center since 2007, when it entered into a 40-year, long-term lease of the 275-bed acute-care hospital. Muskogee Community Hospital, a physician-owned and operated facility licensed for 45 beds, was opened in 2009. Capella owns or operates 15 acute care and specialty hospital facilities in seven states.

· The Cardiovascular Care Group, Nashville, Tenn., finalized the acquisition of a majority interest in the Bakersfield (Calif.) Heart Hospital from MedCath Corp., Charlotte, N.C. The 47-bed heart hospital opened in 1999.

· WellPoint Inc., Indianapolis, will acquire Amerigroup Corp., a managed care company based in Virginia Beach, Va. WellPoint will pay $92 per share in cash to acquire all of the outstanding shares of Amerigroup for a transaction value of approximately $4.9 billion. The acquisition advances the companies' capabilities to serve the growing Medicaid population, including the expanding dual-eligible, seniors and persons with disabilities, and long-term services and support markets. The acquisition is expected to close in the first quarter of 2013.

Projects

· The UConn Health Center, Farmington, Conn., broke ground on a series of construction projects. The projects are two key elements of Bioscience Connecticut, a comprehensive state plan to advance bioscience innovations, meet the health care needs of Connecticut's future and improve access to state-of-the-art care. A new tower for the John Dempsey Hospital will include 169 private patient rooms, an operating room suite and an emergency department. Renovations include cardiology, psychiatry and other ancillary programs such as radiology and pharmacy services. HKS Inc./Steffian Bradley Architects, a joint venture, is providing design services for hospital construction and renovation projects. Turner Construction is serving as the construction manager.

· Cape Fear Valley Health plans to build a 65-bed hospital adjacent to Health Pavilion North in Fayetteville, N.C. The project includes 57 medical-surgical inpatient beds, eight intensive care beds, two operating rooms, imaging services, a laboratory and other ancillary services.