Medical equipment manufacturer Royal Philips has appointed a chief medical officer to guide the company's focus on healthcare technology.
Dr. Jan Kimpen, 57, will join the company on Jan. 1, serving as its first-ever chief medical officer at the parent company level. He most recently served as chairman of the executive board at University Medical Center Utrecht in the Netherlands.
Kimpen, who will report to Philips CEO Frans van Houten, started at UMC Utrecht in 1997, and became president of the organization—one of the biggest in the Netherlands—in 2009. The organization has engaged in a partnership with Philips under his leadership.
“I very much look forward to joining Philips,” Kimpen said in a statement. “Given the healthcare industry's complexities and interdependence, it is my firm belief that innovation in healthcare cannot be achieved in isolation.”
IBM Watson Health, the healthcare-focused cognitive computing division at IBM, recently poached former Philips Healthcare CEO Deborah DiSanzo to become its general manager. In June, Philips signed a 15-year, $500 million deal to offer consulting services, patient monitoring, telehealth and clinical informatics to the Westchester Medical Center Health Network in Valhalla, N.Y.
