National Committee for Quality Assurance names Barr exec VP, and other moves

Kathleen O'Connell has joined Huron Consulting Group's Huron Healthcare practice as a managing director.

O'Connell, 62, will focus on strategic and cost-repositioning planning at academic medical centers and large integrated-delivery networks. She brings more than 25 years of experience to the position, helping hospitals and health systems with mergers and acquisitions, planning, supply-chain management and operational improvements. A registered nurse, O'Connell most recently founded KTO Healthcare Consulting, which provides professional services to a large integrated-delivery network.

McLaren Health Care Corp. promoted Mark O'Halla, one of its hospital executives, to the roles of executive VP and COO of the Flint, Mich.-based system.

O'Halla, 55, who has nearly 30 years of healthcare experience, has served as president and CEO of McLaren Macomb hospital in Clemens, Mich., since 2006. A search is underway for his replacement.

In his new system leadership position, O'Halla's responsibilities will include oversight of McLaren Health Care's hospital and physician network operations and the development of organizational goals related to quality outcomes, patient experience and financial performance. He also will serve as a liaison between the system, community, public and governmental organizations.

Cancer Treatment Centers of America, Schaumburg, Ill., has named Kristin Darby CIO.

As CIO of the five-hospital network, Darby, 39, will direct the organization's information services function, which includes all clinical and nonclinical hardware and software applications, data infrastructure, warehousing and security, informatics and system-wide technology-support services.

Before joining CTCA, Darby served as CIO of Tenet Healthcare Corp.'s Northeast region, where she was responsible for information technology and informatics functions at nine acute-care hospitals and nearly 100 ancillary locations.

Dr. Gareth Morgan will become director of the Myeloma Institute for Research and Therapy, a branch of the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Little Rock, effective in July. He will succeed Dr. Bart Barlogie, 69, who has led the center for 25 years. The facility was established in 1989 to lead research and offer clinical care for multiple myeloma, a form of bone marrow cancer.

Morgan, 57, is a clinician and researcher in multiple myeloma at the Institute of Cancer Research in London.

Hancock Medical Center, Bay St. Louis, Miss., has appointed Tom Ramsey CFO.

Ramsey, 47, joins Hancock with 15 years of healthcare financial operations experience, most recently as CFO at St. Bernard Parish Hospital in Chalmette, La.

He is the second new executive to be added to Hancock's leadership team this month. Thomas Steiner, 52, was named CEO of the hospital effective April 7. In February, Hancock formalized an agreement to have New Orleans-based Ochsner Health System manage the Mississippi facility for two years.

Focal Therapeutics, a Portola Valley, Calif.-based medical device company, named Steve Gex CEO, effective

April 28.

Gex, 59, joins Focal after having served as CEO of several start-up companies, including Biopsys Medical and BioLucent. Biopsys Medical made a breast cancer biopsy device before being sold to Johnson & Johnson. Hologic acquired BioLucent, which made a cushion to minimize pain during mammography.

Focal Therapeutics develops and manufactures the BioZorb surgical marker, a device that provides radiographic marking of soft-tissue sites. George Hermann, president of Focal Therapeutics, and Dr. Gail Lebovic, the company's chief medical officer, have previously worked with Gex to build several companies.

Dr. Michael Barr will become executive VP for the National Committee for Quality Assurance effective May 27.

In his new role, Barr, 53, will lead the not-for-profit's efforts to promote delivery-system reform and performance measurement, research, analysis and consulting work. He joins the NCQA from the American College of Physicians, where he was senior VP of the division of medical practice. During that time, he was a member of the NCQA's patient-centered medical home advisory committee, which helps guide the organization's recognition program.

Barr's previous experience also includes serving as CMO of the Baltimore Medical System; physician director of medical management programs and physician manager of the division of general internal medicine at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville; and chief of internal medicine at Moody Air Force Base, Valdosta, Ga.

Michael Beal is now president of Kindred Healthcare's nursing center division. Beal fills the role vacated by Lane Bowen, who retired from the Louisville, Ky.-based system after 13 years in the position and more than 35 years in post-acute healthcare.

Beal, 46, most recently served as executive VP of the nursing center division's East region and has been with Kindred for more than 22 years. He originally joined the system as a business office manager, but has since served as a licensed nursing-home administrator, a district director of operations and a senior VP. In 2011, Beal was promoted to executive VP.