Northwestern Memorial Healthcare Names Richard J. Gannotta President Northwestern Memorial Hospital

Gannotta joins Northwestern Medicine® after seven years with Duke Raleigh Hospital

CHICAGO, Jan. 7, 2014 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Northwestern Memorial HealthCare (NMHC) announced today that it has named Richard J. Gannotta, DHA, FACHE, President, Northwestern Memorial Hospital and Senior Vice President, NMHC effective February 10. Gannotta currently is president of Duke Raleigh Hospital, one of three hospitals comprising the Duke University Health System.

"Rick is an accomplished healthcare executive who understands academic health systems like ours," said Dean M. Harrison, NMHC President and CEO. "He has a track record for working collaboratively and achieving results. We expect Rick to play an important role in the leadership of Northwestern Medicine®."

Gannotta will lead hospital operations in support of Northwestern Memorial's Patients First mission. He will work closely with the leadership of NMHC and Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine to advance Northwestern Medicine™, the health system's and medical school's shared vision. As Northwestern Memorial Hospital's President, Gannotta will report to Peter J. McCanna, NMHC Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer.

"Attracting an executive of Rick's caliber will help us to continue to advance our efforts to develop clinical programs of distinction and expand access to Northwestern Medicine," said McCanna. "Through our recently aligned physician organization, Northwestern Medical Group, we have the combined strengths of top physician, clinical and administrative leaders to provide the best possible care to the patients and communities we are privileged to serve." 

Gannotta joined Duke Raleigh Hospital as its Chief Operating Officer in 2006, before becoming president early last year. At Duke, he worked closely with department chairs at the Duke University School of Medicine on clinical alignment, program development, and physician recruitment to expand the hospital's primary and specialty care practices. Through those collaborations, and with the partnership of administrative teams, Gannotta's leadership efforts increased market share for the Duke health system by strengthening Duke Raleigh's financial position and clinical programs. The hospital also achieved top performance in patient satisfaction and, for the first time, attained Nurse Magnet Status, a designation bestowed to only 5 percent of the nation's hospitals. 

A nurse practitioner, Gannotta is also faculty for the Duke School of Nursing's Nursing and Health Leadership Program. He has a BSN from Florida International University, an MBA from Campbell University and a doctorate in health administration from the Medical University of South Carolina.

About Northwestern Memorial Hospital

Northwestern Memorial is one of the country's premier academic medical center hospitals and is the primary teaching hospital of the Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. Along with its Prentice Women's Hospital and Stone Institute of Psychiatry, the hospital has 1,705 affiliated physicians and 6,769 employees.  Northwestern Memorial is recognized for providing exemplary patient care and state-of-the art advancements in the areas of cardiovascular care; women's health; oncology; neurology and neurosurgery; solid organ and soft tissue transplants and orthopaedics.

Northwestern Memorial is a nursing Magnet hospital, the nation's highest recognition for patient care and nursing excellence. Northwestern Memorial ranks 6^th in the nation in the U.S. News & World Report  2013 Honor Roll of America's Best Hospitals, which recognized the hospital in 14 of 16 clinical specialties and rated it No. 1 in Illinois and Chicago in both its state and metro rankings. For 14 years running, Northwestern Memorial has been rated among the "100 Best Companies for Working Mothers" guide by Working Mother magazine. The hospital is a recipient of the prestigious National Quality Health Care Award and has been chosen by Chicagoans as the Consumer Choice according to the National Research Corporation's annual survey for 15 consecutive years. 

SOURCE Northwestern Memorial Hospital