Setting the National Standard With COVID-19, Investing in Life-Changing Care for All

Join us for a conversation with Eugene A. Woods, CEO of Atrium Health and Dr. Julie A. Freischlag, CEO of Wake Forest Baptist Health and Dean of Wake Forest School of Medicine who will share their thoughts on Charlotte’s new medical school and its positive influence on the region, the impact of COVID-19 to North Carolina and the future of vaccine research and collaboration, and general insight into issues related to global health and medicine.

NEWS: Charlotte Business Journal names Atrium Health CEO Gene Woods as 2020 Business Person of the Year – https://bit.ly/3gdcgtW

WACC Distinguished Speaker Series

Date: Wednesday, December 16, 2020
Time: 2:00 – 3:00 P.M. EST
Cost: Free (WACC Members); Donations Expected (Non-Members)

     

Biography
Eugene A. Woods, MBA, MHA, FACHE
Eugene A. Woods, MBA, MHA, FACHE, is president and chief executive officer of Atrium Health, one of the most comprehensive and highly
integrated not-for-profit healthcare systems in the nation. With 41 hospitals, over 900 care locations and an annual net revenue of more than $11.5 billion, Atrium Health is responsible for nearly 14 million patient interactions each year.

Woods joined Atrium Health in April 2016 and quickly collaborated with the organization’s nearly 55,000 teammates to unite around a redefined vision to be the first and best choice for care and a new mission statement to improve health, elevate hope and advance healing – for all. During his tenure, Atrium Health also has been recognized as one of the Best Employers for Diversity, for new grads and for Women by Forbes; number one on the list of Best Places to Work for Women & Diverse Managers by DiversityMBA; one of the 150 Top Places to Work in Healthcare by Becker’s Healthcare; and the number one military-friendly employer in the country. In addition, the organization has been recognized by U.S. News & World Report, Leapfrog Group and the American Nurses Credentialing Center as among the very best in the nation, and honored by the American Hospital Association with the Equity of Care Award and one of the first-ever Quest for Quality honors.

Most recently, Atrium Health was recognized by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) as a 2020 CMS Health Equity Award recipient for its dedication to health equity by reducing disparities and enabling communities to achieve the highest level of health.
One of today’s most prominent leaders in healthcare, Woods is passionate about protecting and expanding access and coverage to all Americans, better engaging with our communities to advance positive health outcomes and achieving equity of care by eliminating disparities.

He has long been active as a leader among his peers in the American Hospital Association, including a term as chairman of the board of trustees in 2017 and member of the Health, Strategy and Innovation Committee. Woods is also a member of Becker’s Healthcare’s Advisory Board, Scottsdale Institute’s Board of Directors, Wall Street Journal’s CEO Council, and currently serves on the board of Best Buy and as deputy chair of the board of the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond. Woods also was appointed to North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper’s Economic Recovery Task Force. And most recently, the Governor’s Andrea Harris Social, Economic, Environmental and Health Equity Task Force, created to address the social, economic, environmental and health disparities in communities of color that have been exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Woods has nearly 30 years of healthcare leadership experience, having overseen non-profit and for-profit managed hospitals, academic and
community-based delivery systems and rural and urban facilities. He previously was president and chief operating officer of CHRISTUS Health, a not-for-profit health system comprising 50 hospitals and long-term care facilities, 175 clinics and outpatient centers, and 30,000 associates, where he oversaw acute, post-acute and international operations for facilities in the United States, Mexico and Chile. Previously, he served in dual roles at Catholic Health Initiatives – as CEO of Saint Joseph Health System and as senior vice president responsible for implementing national initiatives for the faith-based organization, which operates in 18 states.

Woods was named by Modern Healthcare as one of the 100 Most Influential People in Healthcare for the fourth time recently, taking spot No. 32. In addition, he was named among Modern Healthcare’s Top 25 Minority Executives in Healthcare for the fifth consecutive time – featured in 2020 on the inaugural listing of only five “Luminaries,” honored for their career-defining work in reshaping the industry. His numerous professional distinctions also include being named one of the 50 Great African American Leaders as well as one of the 100 Great Leaders in Healthcare by Becker’s Healthcare; one of the Most Influential Blacks in Corporate America by Savoy Magazine; one of the Most Powerful Executives in Corporate America by Black Enterprise; one of the Most Admired CEOs of 2018 by the Charlotte Business Journal; one of the 2019 Power 100 honorees by Business North Carolina; Senior Executive of the Year by the National Association of Health Service Executives; and Alumni of the Year by the Pennsylvania State University.

Woods holds three degrees from the Pennsylvania State University: a bachelor’s degree in health planning and administration, a master’s degree in business administration and a master’s degree in health administration.

Julie A. Freischlag, MD, FACS, FRCSEd(Hon), DFSVS

Julie A. Freischlag, MD, FACS, FRCSEd(Hon), DFSVS, is the chief executive officer of Wake Forest Baptist Health, dean of Wake Forest School of Medicine, and chief academic office of Atrium Health Enterprise. Consistently ranked among the nation’s top 50 medical centers, Wake Forest Baptist includes a growing, multi-hospital health system and physician network, the state-of-the-art and highly competitive Wake Forest School of Medicine, and the school’s technology transfer and commercialization arm, Wake Forest Innovations.

As CEO and dean, she has the overall responsibility for the health system’s clinical, academic and innovation enterprises and its annual operating budget of $3 billion. Previously, Freischlag was vice chancellor for Human Health Sciences and dean of the School of Medicine at UC Davis. Freischlag has helped to drive change in academic medicine with a deep commitment to diversity and inclusion. For more than 15 years, she has led education and training programs at top medical schools in her role as professor and chair of surgery and vascular surgery departments. Freischlag also has more than 30 years of experience leading patient-care services as chief of surgery or vascular surgery at nationally ranked hospitals. She served as professor, chair of the surgery department and surgeon-in-chief at Johns Hopkins
Medical Institutions. She led initiatives to expand research, add specialty clinical services, improve patient-centered care and patient safety, redesign the surgical training program and enhance academic career paths.

Her national leadership includes serving as a former governor and secretary of the Board of Governors and a regent and past chair of the Board of Regents of the American College of Surgeons. She is the past president of the Society for Vascular Surgery and the Society for Vascular Surgery Foundation, and past president of the Association of VA Surgeons and the Society of Surgical Chairs. Freischlag was the editor of JAMA Surgery for ten years (2005-2014) and is a member of the editorial boards of the Annals of Vascular Surgery, Journal of
the American College of Surgeons, and British Journal of Surgery.

She has published more than 250 manuscripts, abstracts and book chapters, primarily addressing the treatment of abdominal aortic aneurysms, carotid artery disease and peripheral vascular disease utilizing outcome data and clinical trials; additionally, she has published on burnout and work-life balance. Freischlag is an internationally recognized expert in the treatment of thoracic outlet syndrome which can require a specialized surgical procedure. Her present research involves completing a assessment of a prospective randomized trial that tracks more than 800 patients from 34 Veterans Affairs Medical Centers across the country to compare outcomes in patients who received either open or endovascular repair of their abdominal aortic aneurysm. Freischlag has received numerous teaching awards, an achievement award from the Department of Veterans Affairs, and was elected to the National Academy of Medicine in 2015.

She has mentored students, residents and young faculty and is a frequent speaker on topics ranging from her expertise in vascular diseases, teamwork and patient safety, leadership and work-life balance to women succeeding in health professions. Freischlag has dedicated her career to serving as a role model for her students, a respected colleague across health professions, a strong community leader and a national voice for improving health and health care.

Currently, Freischlag serves on the Executive Board Association of Academic Health Centers, the Council of Deans of the Association for American Medical Colleges, Aga Khan University Board of Trustees, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine Advisory Board, the University of Illinois Health Advisory Board, and the American Hospital Association Changing Workforce Task Force.