Excellence in Governance for large providers: Dr. Evelyn Hayes of Baton Rouge General Hospital

Dr. Evelyn Hayes' tenure as board chair at Baton Rouge (La.) General Medical Center didn't start off as planned.

Shortly after she began her term in January 2013, the hospital's longtime CEO announced his retirement. With no obvious candidate to appoint, Hayes herself took the reins at the 527-bed hospital, putting her own medical practice on hold to help keep the hospital running smoothly.

“She was a real connecting force during that time period,” said Mark Slyter, who became CEO in September 2013. “It made my transition into the position very seamless.”

Hayes has been chosen as this year's recipient of the Excellence in Governance Award for large provider organizations—hospitals with more than 500 beds.

Long before she moved into a leadership role, Hayes, 67, was a trailblazer who became the city's first female obstetrician-gynecologist. She started practicing at a time when women were still given anesthesia for their deliveries and men were barred from the room—and she didn't like what she saw. “I wasn't comfortable with that because I had a relationship with my patients,” Hayes said.

So, working with local midwives, she started a community birthing center away from the hospital where she practiced. The center drew enough patient interest that the hospital reversed course and began offering women more birth options in less than a year.

Hayes began to work with the hospital's medical staff leadership to address deficiencies she saw in patient care—such as delivery rooms that weren't equipped with basic tools like tubes used to clear meconium from a baby's airway. “I realized that the only way to really make a difference was not to whine but to get on the committee,” she said.

Hayes joined Baton Rouge General's board of trustees in 2002 and quickly became involved with the safety and quality committee.

“You hear all the time executives say they want to focus on quality,” said Janice Pellar, who took over as board chair in January, though Hayes remains on the board. “Evelyn actually takes the step to make it personal.”

When the hospital adopted Six Sigma for performance improvement, Hayes also took the training, earning a green belt. “She didn't have to do that,” Pellar said. “But it served as an example to everyone that she was serious about quality.”

After Slyter's appointment, Hayes returned to her role as board chair but soon faced another crisis. The hospital's Mid City campus was experiencing a 30% increase in uninsured emergency department visits and a 60% increase in uninsured psychiatric consults. The city's charity-care hospital and dedicated mental-health ED had shut their doors, leaving Mid City as the only inner-city emergency-care facility.

The hospital was spending more than $1 million a month caring for uninsured patients, with projected losses above $20 million for the following year. These were unsustainable numbers for the medical center, which also has a campus across town known as the Bluebonnet campus.

Hayes stressed Baton Rouge General's commitment to the Mid City area. The hospital in 1991 created the Mid City Redevelopment Alliance and continues to provide financial help to longtime employees who buy homes there.

But the situation was untenable and the board made the decision to close the Mid City ED. “We couldn't continue those losses without compromising the entire organization,” Pellar said. “Evelyn just provided a very calm, reasonable voice. But more than that, she was available to people.”

At the 11th hour, the state provided funding, allowing the ED to remain open.

“At that time, Evelyn was just a champion on the board,” Slyter said. “She is very respectful, collaborative, but direct. Certainly no one questions where her heart is. When she speaks, people listen with a great deal of respect.”

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