Rayus Radiology names new CEO, plus more leadership moves at Envision, Penn Medicine and St. Jude

Rayus Radiology has appointed a new chief executive officer, the Minnesota-based imaging firm revealed Wednesday. 

Sami Abbasi, MBA, is taking over the organization’s top post after spending three years as managing director and operating partner at Florida private equity firm Sun Capital Partners. He replaces Kim Tzoumakas, who recently left Rayus to become CEO of Maxor National Pharmacy Services. 

“We are thrilled to welcome Sami Abbasi as our new CEO at Rayus Radiology,” Kit Crancer, the company’s senior VP of public policy and partnerships, told Radiology Business by text message Wednesday. “His exceptional leadership experience and proven track record of driving growth in healthcare organizations position us for an exciting next chapter.”

Abbasi has over 35 years of healthcare services experience, according to a profile posted to Rayus’ webpage. He co-founded and served as CEO of Radiologix, helping build the company from initial idea to a “leading” publicly traded national provider of diagnostic imaging services. In 2006, Abbasi led the merger of Radiologix with Primedex Health Systems to create RadNet Inc. 

Abbasi previously served as CEO of Unifeye Vision Partners, PhyMed Healthcare Group, American Pathology Partners and National Surgical Care, private equity-backed providers in the eyecare, anesthesiology, pathology and surgery center markets. Rayus is owned by Wellspring Capital Management, operating 150 freestanding imaging centers, employing over 2,000 team members and 400-plus affiliated radiologists managing 75 million images annually. 

Envision reshapes C-suite

Multispecialty radiology provider Envision Healthcare continues to reshape its leadership team with two recent appointments. 

Carrie Damon has joined the organization as chief information officer, while Sean Gill has been appointed as senior VP of health plan relations. Damon has over 20 years of experience in the field, most recently serving as global chief digital officer at accounting firm KPMG and CIO at nonprofit hospital network Centura Health. 

Gill, meanwhile, was market president of Chicago for Essence Healthcare, leading its Medicare Advantage plan expansion in the city. Before that, he was regional VP of payer contracting with multispecialty physician group Duly Health and Care. 

“I’m thrilled to welcome Carrie and Sean to the team,” Jason Owen, MBA, president and CEO of Envision, said in a statement shared Jan. 21. “Their extensive expertise and leadership will propel Envision as we continue in this next phase with purpose and focus, building on our commitment to being a reliable and trusted partner in the delivery of high-quality care.”

Envision employs some 500 radiologists and also operates in hospitalist medicine, emergency care, anesthesiology and neonatology. Formerly backed by KKR, the organization emerged from bankruptcy protection in November 2023. 

Penn Medicine radiology chair

Philadelphia-based Penn Medicine on Wednesday named Pari V. Pandharipande, MD, MPH, as its new chair of radiology, effective June 1. 

A nationally renowned physician-scientist, she has served in the same role with the Ohio State University School of Medicine since 2021. 

Pandharipande succeeds longtime department Chair Mitchell Schnall, MD, PhD, who now serves as Penn Medicine’s inaugural senior VP for data and technology solutions. Internationally recognized interventional radiologist William Stavropoulos, MD, will continue as interim chair during the transition. 

“Dr. Pandharipande brings a wealth of experience in key leadership roles that uniquely position her to lead our ‘One Penn Medicine Radiology’ efforts at this critical time for healthcare,” Kevin B. Mahoney, CEO of the University of Pennsylvania Health System, said in a statement shared Jan. 22. “As we continue to enhance care, enrich patient experience, increase efficiency, and standardize processes across our facilities, we are especially excited for her expertise in managing transformative clinical integration projects across other large health systems.”

St. Jude’s new imaging leader

And finally, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis, Tennessee, on Wednesday named Elizabeth M.C. Hillman, PhD, as the founding chair of its new Department of Imaging Sciences. 

She joins the hospital from Columbia University, where she was a tenured professor in the departments of biomedical engineering and radiology. A renowned physicist and prolific inventor, Hillman has developed a wide range of novel imaging and data-analysis methods. 

“We quickly realized that we wanted her to build and lead not just a center of excellence but a full academic department,” James R. Downing, MD, president and CEO of St. Jude, said in a statement. “As part of our culture of innovation, Elizabeth will recruit talented faculty who will push the frontier of imaging to transform basic and clinical research for children everywhere.”