Longtime Ministry Health Care president and chief executive officer Nick Desien will be shifting into a new role effective Dec. 1, according to an announcement made by Wisconsin Health Ministries of Ascension Health. He will serve as Ascension Ministry Market Leader for Wisconsin, Kansas and Oklahoma.
Daniel Neufelder, who has served as senior vice president and chief operating officer for Ministry Health Care for the past two years, will succeed Desien as Ministry Health Care president and chief executive officer.
In Desien’s new role, he will be accountable for providing leadership, support and direction related to the strategic positioning and operational performance of both Ministry Health Care and Columbia-St. Mary’s in Wisconsin, as well as the health ministries in Kansas and Oklahoma. Desien was president and chief executive officer since 1999.
“Dan has demonstrated a strong dedication to our promise of delivering person-centered care, while keeping our organization focused on operational and performance excellence every day,” Desien said. “Dan’s expertise will strengthen our capabilities as a value-based provider in the new healthcare marketplace and support Ministry and Ascension’s culture of high reliability in both quality and safety.”
Added Dr. Patricia Maryland, Ascension Health president of healthcare operations and chief operating officer: “Dan brings a wealth of experience to his new role, as well as a commitment to Ascension’s Mission of serving all persons with special attention to those who are poor and vulnerable. I’m looking forward to his even greater contributions to the continued success of Ministry Health Care and our integrated national health ministry.”
Neufelder was previously president and chief executive officer of Affinity Health System, a part of Ministry Health Care. Before joining Affinity, Neufelder served for 12 years as the executive vice president and chief operating officer of Memorial Hospital in South Bend, Ind.
He previously served the Community Health Network of Indianapolis for 10 years, with the last four of those years as the executive vice president and chief operating officer of Community Hospital East. Earlier in his career, he held positions with St. Vincent Hospital and Healthcare System in Indianapolis, and was a healthcare management consultant and auditor with Ernst & Young.
Ministry Health Care has grown to include 15 hospitals, 45 clinics and more than 12,000 associates including 650 physicians and advanced practice clinicians, serving more than 1.1 million people across Wisconsin and eastern Minnesota. In 2013, Ministry Health Care joined Ascension.
Ascension Health Wisconsin includes Ministry Health Care and Columbia St. Mary’s, both based in Milwaukee. The Wisconsin Health Ministries of Ascension Health are part of Ascension, the largest Catholic and nonprofit healthcare organization in the nation, with 153,000 associates serving in more than 1,900 locations in 23 states and the District of Columbia.
