Health care in the big city during COVID-19

Kevin B. Churchwell, MD, is the President and Chief Executive Officer of Boston Children’s Hospital, providing leadership, vision, and oversight for a team that’s dedicated to improving and advancing child health through their life-changing work in clinical care, research and innovation, medical education, and community engagement.

Since joining Boston Children’s as its Executive Vice President of Health Affairs Chief Operating Officer in 2013, Dr. Churchwell has been instrumental in leading the hospital’s work to become a High Reliability Organization, one where zero avoidable harm impacts any patient, family member, or employee. He has brought to Boston the same passion for enhancing the patient family experience that defined his tenure as CEO of both Nemours/Alfred I. duPont Hospital for Children in Wilmington, DE, and Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital, part of the Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville, TN.

An advocate for equity, diversity and inclusivity, Dr. Churchwell is responsible for establishing three of the 11 Offices of Health Equity and Inclusion at hospitals across the U.S. and Canada, including the Office at Boston Children’s, which he founded in 2016. With the publication of Boston Children’s own Declaration for Equity, Diversity and Inclusivity in 2020, Dr. Churchwell has committed to the work required to make Boston Children’s a community that’s made stronger by our differences, and a leader in equity for all.

A graduate of Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Vanderbilt Medical School in Nashville, Dr. Churchwell completed his pediatric residency and a clinical fellowship in Pediatric Critical Care at Boston Children’s Hospital. He is currently an Associate Professor of Pediatric Anesthesia at Harvard Medical School and Dr. Churchwell is the Robert and Dana Smith Associate Professor of Anesthesia at the Harvard Medical School.

Disclosures: Dr. Churchwell is a member of the Massachusetts Business Roundtable, a board member of the Boston Chamber of Commerce, Massachusetts Hospital Association, the Whitehead Institute, Advisory Board for The Boston University School of Public Health, and the Boys and Girls Club of Boston.

Kate Walsh is president and CEO of the Boston Medical Center (BMC) health system, with annual operating revenue of $4.9 billion. BMC is a private, not-for-profit, 514 bed, academic medical center dedicated to meeting all the needs of its patients, needs that often transcend the scope of traditional medicine like food and housing insecurity, and advancing health equity within the communities it serves. The primary teaching affiliate of Boston University School of Medicine, Boston Medical Center has nearly 6000 employees and 755 physicians who are affiliated with Boston University Medical Group. BMC Health System also includes the BMC HealthNet Plan, a Medicaid Managed Care Organization with more than 400,000 members in Massachusetts and New Hampshire, and Boston HealthNet, a network affiliation of 14 community health centers throughout Boston.

Prior to her appointment at Boston Medical Center, Ms. Walsh served as executive vice president and chief operating officer of Brigham and Women’s Hospital. She served previously as the chief operating officer for Novartis Institutes for Biomedical Research and at Massachusetts General Hospital in positions including senior vice president of medical services and the MGH Cancer Center. Prior to her tenure at Mass General, she held positions in a number of New York City hospitals including Montefiore, Columbia Presbyterian Medical Center, Saint Luke’s – Roosevelt Hospital Center and the New York City Health and Hospitals Corporation.

Ms. Walsh received her bachelor of arts degree and a master’s degree in public health from Yale University. She has served as a member of the Board of the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, and currently serves on the Boston Public Health Commission, the Massachusetts Hospital Association, the Association of American Medical Colleges, Pine Street Inn, and Yale University.

Chris Louis, PhD, MHA is Clinical Associate Professor of Health Law, Policy, and Management at the Boston University School of Public Health. He is also the Director of the Health Care Management Program and the Director of BUSPH Dual Degree Programs (JD/MPH, MD/MPH, MS/MPH, MSW/MPH, MBA/MPH). His primary research interests reside in health care organization and delivery, Medicaid innovation programs, cancer care, children with medical complexity, and large-scale program evaluation. He is currently a Principal Investigator on multiple state, federal, and private program evaluations and research grants. These projects include an American Cancer Society grant focused on understanding breast cancer screening practices in the Appalachian region, an evaluation of the current Arkansas Section 1115 Medicaid waiver, and an evaluation of a HRSA-funded grant seeking to improve care for children with medical complexity. He has published recently on breast cancer care delivery, Medicaid reform, and accountable care in journals such as the Journal of Health Policy, Politics, and Law, Health Care Management Review, and the American Journal of Accountable Care. Dr. Louis has nearly a decade of health care industry experience in strategy, operations, and project management. Dr. Louis’ past experience includes serving as a consultant and hospital administrator in CT, FL and NJ. Dr. Louis earned his PhD from Penn State University in Health Policy & Administration. He also holds a Master of Health Administration (MHA) from the University of Florida and a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration from Sacred Heart University.