New CEOs joining Envision Healthcare, Iowa Radiology while top execs exit at GE HealthCare, Flywheel
Radiology organizations have announced a slew of leadership changes in the past few days, including new CEOs at both Envision Healthcare and Iowa Radiology.
Meanwhile, vendors GE HealthCare and Flywheel recently revealed the forthcoming departures of key leaders holding the same title.
Here is a quick rundown of recent announcements:
Envision appoints CEO
Multispecialty radiology provider Envision Healthcare on Monday announced the appointment of Jason Owen, MBA, as its new president and chief executive.
He joins the company from BlueSprig, a leading provider of applied behavior analysis therapy for children, where he held the same role. Meanwhile, Henry Howe, MBA, Envision’s interim CEO, will continue as chief financial officer, with the change effective April 15.
“Jason has extensive experience leading healthcare organizations and driving transformation,” Steve Nelson, chair of Nashville-based Envision’s board, said in a statement. “His leadership approach, which is rooted in supporting the patient-clinician relationship and empowering teams to thrive, is an ideal fit for Envision.”
The CEO change comes after previous leader Jim Rechtin, MBA, announced his departure for the same role at insurer Humana. Envision also exited from the Chapter 11 bankruptcy process in October. The company employs more than 17,000 clinicians as of last year, including 500 radiologists completing roughly 8 million reads.
Iowa Radiology leadership change
Iowa Radiology has named Kent Lehr, MBA, as its new CEO, according to an announcement shared April 12.
He replaces Rick Portel, who founded the practice in 2001 and retired in February.
Lehr has more than a decade of experience in healthcare leadership, starting his career as an administrative fellow at UnityPoint Health in 2010. He also started the organization Pink Sky Ventures and co-founded ManageLife Health, according to the announcement.
Iowa Radiology is a partner of Des Moines-based UnityPoint and has four locations.
Other changes
A few more leadership news items of note, in rapid fashion:
- On April 9, Jan Makela, GE HealthCare’s CEO of imaging, told the company that he is leaving to become chief executive of a private company that is not a competitor. His last day is July 8, with GE evaluating both internal and external candidates to fill the role, according to an April 15 filing with the SEC.
- Medical imaging data management vendor Flywheel announced Monday that Jim Olson is stepping down from his role as CEO and board member, effective May 1. He’ll stay on as an advisor during the transition, with Flywheel seeking a “long-term CEO to drive its next phase of growth.”
Marty Stempniak has covered healthcare since 2012, with his byline appearing in the American Hospital Association's member magazine, Modern Healthcare and McKnight's. Prior to that, he wrote about village government and local business for his hometown newspaper in Oak Park, Illinois. He won a Peter Lisagor and Gold EXCEL awards in 2017 for his coverage of the opioid epidemic.