Editor’s note: This article by Rick Jurgens was first published in the Valley News on Aug. 11, 2016.
RANDOLPH — A hospital administrator from Maine has been tapped to take the top job at Gifford Medical Center.
The selection of Daniel Bennett, the former chief operating officer at Waldo County General Hospital in Belfast, Maine, after a nationwide search was announced Wednesday afternoon by Gifford’s Board of Directors.
Board Chairman Gus Meyer described Gifford’s new chief executive as “a great listener and collaborative leader, with the vision and management skills required to maintain a positive organizational culture, fulfill strategic goals and effectively pursue new opportunities.”
At Gifford, Bennett will oversee a provider network with 600 employees, a $64 million annual budget, a 25-bed hospital and 30-bed nursing home in Randolph and clinics including Upper Valley facilities in White River Junction, Bethel, Chelsea and Sharon. His first day of work is scheduled for Oct. 3.
In Maine, Bennett was the chief operating officer at Waldo County General Hospital. That hospital joined with another area hospital, and began “operating as a unified system” in December 2015, according to its website.
But Gifford, which is located in between academic medical centers at Dartmouth-Hitchcock and the University of Vermont, isn’t headed for a similar link-up, according to Bennett. “Independence is something that is definitely a virtue, and something (that Gifford’s governors) hope to retain,” he said.
The new CEO sees as his biggest challenge learning about and getting involved in Vermont’s health care reform efforts. That, along with recruitment of primary care doctors and getting oriented and acclimated in his new community, will be at the top of his to-do list on the new job, he said.
Bennett was raised in Brandon, Vermont,, graduated from St. Michael’s College and in 1991 worked briefly in the accounting department at Gifford, where he met his wife, Jane, who was the hospital’s dietitian. Their son was born at Gifford.
Bennett succeeds Joe Woodin, whose 17-year tenure as administrator ended in April when he left to take the helm of a Massachusetts hospital that is part of the giant Partners HealthCare chain. Woodin’s compensation package at Gifford was $477,000 in 2013, according to Gifford’s tax return.
Bennett’s compensation that year was $168,000, according to the tax return of Waldo County Healthcare.
Bennett holds an accounting degree from St. Michael’s College and a master’s of business administration degree from University of New Hampshire.
Bennett also worked for Mount Ascutney Hospital and Health Care in Windsor before moving to Maine 16 years ago.
The Gifford news release said Bennett implemented an electronic health records system at Waldo, developed programs to increase healthcare access to uninsured and underserved populations, and created a hospital-based oral health program there.
“Innovation has always been part of the culture here,” he said of the Randolph hospital. “Gifford continuously looks at what is coming next and then builds out its services to meet that need. The recent Federally Qualified Health Center designation and integration of dental and behavioral health into primary care are examples of this creative positioning. The organization is in wonderful shape.”
