Ascension Health names Peter Leibold chief advocacy officer, and other newsmakers

Peter Leibold has been named Ascension Health's new chief advocacy officer, a position that will make him the top lobbyist for the nation's largest not-for-profit health system. He will start Nov. 1.

Previously, Leibold, 51, was the CEO of the American Health Lawyers Association, the largest health-focused attorney association in the U.S., for the past 15 years. Prior to the AHLA, he was the top lawyer for the Catholic Health Association and also was chief of staff for U.S. Sen. John Danforth (R-Mo.).

Mary Ella Payne, Ascension's senior VP of policy and system legislative leadership, had been holding the advocacy role on an interim basis.

Dr. Bruce Lytle is stepping down as chairman of the Cleveland Clinic's world renowned Heart & Vascular Institute—a role he's held for the past seven years.

He plans to stay on until his successor is chosen.

Lytle, 68, who has been with the clinic for 38 years, is credited with launching the Heart & Vascular Institute. He also extended the institute's reach nationally by launching the health system's first clinical consulting team.

To date, the institute has forged 10 affiliations around the country.

Joe Kessler has been named CFO at Community Health Network, based in Indianapolis.

Kessler, 54, has more than 30 years of healthcare finance experience. Most recently, he was CFO of Kaleida Health, Buffalo, N.Y. He also held leadership roles at TriHealth in Cincinnati and at accounting firm Ernst & Young.

Kessler replaces Tom Fischer, who left eight-hospital CHN in December.

Dan Drawbaugh, CIO at Pittsburgh-based health giant UPMC, has stepped down from his position.

Drawbaugh, 55, has been with UPMC since 1983, starting as the director of biomedical engineering for UPMC Shadyside, one of the system's primary hospitals. He was later named CIO of the hospital and then became system CIO in 1996.

Ed McCallister, UPMC's senior VP of enterprise applications, will serve as interim CIO.

Barbara Mintz has taken on a new role at Barnabas Health, West Orange, N.J., becoming the system's first VP of healthy living and community engagement.

Mintz, a registered dietitian and a certified personal trainer, has worked as a wellness executive at Barnabas' Newark (N.J.) Beth Israel Medical Center since 2011. In her new role, she will focus on creating education programs for community members to improve health and wellness—such as programs that encourage exercise, nutrition and smoking cessation.

The Veterans Affairs Department has named Christine Croteau permanent director of Edith Nourse Rogers VA Memorial Medical Center, Bedford, Mass.

Croteau had been serving as acting director of Bedford's VA hospital after former director Tammy Krueger left to lead Manchester (N.H.) VA Medical Center. Croteau also has other VA experience, including stints with the VA Boston Healthcare System.