Becker’s Hospital Review recently released its 2024 list of “Hospital and Health System CEO Influencers to Know,” and three UC Health leaders were among only 64 CEOs to be recognized nationally.
Per the news release: “When these leaders speak up about important health equity issues, advocate for public health, pioneer new care models and adopt cutting-edge technologies, their actions receive global attention. These thought leaders are the arbiters setting new standards in healthcare practices.”
Congratulations to the following colleagues:
David Lubarsky, M.D., CEO and vice chancellor of human health services, UC Davis Health: Dr. Lubarsky leads UC Davis Health, a $5.5 billion integrated health system encompassing a nationally ranked medical school, nursing school and hospital network, including the flagship UC Davis Medical Center. Since joining as CEO in 2018, he has boosted revenues by over 50%, expanded care access for underserved populations and overseen innovative partnerships, such as AI-enabled healthcare tools and cloud services with Amazon Web Services. Under his leadership, UC Davis Health has become a model for health equity, with Medi-Cal patient access increasing from under 1,000 to 500,000 and targeted hiring efforts doubling representation from low-income communities. Dr. Lubarsky has also advanced AI governance, digital health equity and groundbreaking research while fostering UC Davis Health’s reputation as an anchor institution improving its surrounding communities.
Patty Maysent, CEO, UC San Diego Health: Patty serves as CEO of UC San Diego Health, where she guides the region’s only academic health system, overseeing more than 14,000 team members and 1.27 million annual patient visits. Under her leadership, the organization has expanded to include two academic medical centers, a community hospital and over 30 care offices. Her direction led to UC San Diego Health earning recognition from U.S. News & World Report on its “Best Hospitals National Honor Roll” for two consecutive years and rankings among the nation’s best in 11 specialties, including pulmonology, neurology, and heart and vascular. A strong advocate for academic medicine, Patty emphasizes its unique ability to offer patients advanced, personalized care through expert-led teams and cutting-edge treatments. Before becoming CEO of UC San Diego Health in 2016, she held leadership roles of progressive responsibility. Today, she remains active in local and statewide healthcare boards and community initiatives.
Johnese Spisso, CEO, UCLA Hospital System, and president, UCLA Health: Johnese has been the president of UCLA Health, CEO of UCLA Hospital System, and associate vice chancellor of UCLA Health Sciences since 2016. With over 30 years of career experience, she oversees the operations of UCLA’s hospitals and clinics, along with the health system’s regional outreach strategy. Prior to UCLA, Johnese spent 22 years at Seattle-based UW Medicine, where she held leadership roles including COO and vice president of medical affairs, contributing to major operational integrations and statewide trauma system development. She began her career as a registered nurse, eventually leading critical care and trauma services at UC Davis Medical Center in Sacramento, Calif. Johnese serves on national boards and has received several awards, including recognition as one of the Los Angeles Business Journal’s “Women of Influence in Health Care.”