We have been fortunate to enjoy significant growth over the past several years, and as a result, we are pleased to highlight well-deserved promotions for eight members of our leadership team who have played key roles in that success.
For two years, a global pandemic has wreaked havoc on America’s healthcare delivery systems, including behavioral healthcare. Despite facing numerous difficulties posed by COVID-19, Spectrum rose to the challenge, and in 2021 served more than 14,000 clients across in inpatient and outpatient programs and grew our employee base to more than 1,000.
In addition to adaptations such as our COVID-19-unit, telehealth options and take-home medications, we have also been at the forefront of broader, long-term change. We opened another rapid access treatment program, partnered with the Massachusetts Department of Correction to provide life-changing medication for opioid use disorder to offenders statewide, and are working with Tufts Health Plan and Pear Therapeutics on digital alternatives to support continuing care.
In short, the pace of change in addiction has rapidly accelerated, and Spectrum Health Systems remains at the forefront. As a result, leadership roles have been redefined in key areas to better reflect the comprehensive scope of responsibilities they now entail. This will position us to continue to thrive in an increasingly complex healthcare environment and respond swiftly and successfully to new initiatives arising from state and local governments, insurance companies, and accountable care organizations.
Over the coming months, we will be presenting a Q&A series on each of our senior staff members to spotlight their roles and accomplishments individually. A brief overview of each members’ new title and responsibilities is listed below.
- Kristin Nolan to Chief Behavioral Health Officer. Kristin has been with us since 2002, most recently as Senior Vice President of Behavioral Health. In her new role, she will provide executive oversight of our continuum of substance use disorder treatment, corrections-based opiate treatment programming, and state-funded programs for adolescent youths.
- Christopher Petrozzi to Chief Organizational Development Officer. Chris brings over 25 years industry experience to his new role. Formerly serving as Spectrum’s Senior Vice President of Correctional Services, he will now provide leadership and oversight for our strategic planning, compliance, and quality improvement activities.
- Stacy Flanagan to Chief Human Resources Officer. Stacy joined us in 2002, serving most recently as Vice President of Human Resources. Stacy will provide leadership and oversight of employee relations, recruitment, retention, compensation, and training while ensuring compliance with employment laws and regulations.
- Lisa Blanchard to Chief Clinical Officer. Lisa joined us in 2000 and has served as Vice President of Clinical Services since 2017. As Chief Clinical Officer, she will provide leadership and oversight of all clinical services, including the establishment of clinical policies, standards of care, evidence-based practices, and our company-wide clinical development training program.
- Cindy Buraczynski to Senior Vice President of External Affairs. Cindy joined us in 2002 and has been serving as Vice President of External Affairs. In her new role, she will provide leadership and oversight for our external communications, including proposal development, advertising, marketing, public relations, and fundraising activities.
- Earl Warren to Vice President of Correction. A member of our Corrections Division for more than 20 years, Earl will provide executive oversight of our correctional treatment programs operating in Massachusetts, Virginia, and Georgia.
- Theresa Caron to Vice President of Revenue Cycle Management. Theresa joined us in 2017 as Director of Reimbursement. She will now provide leadership and oversight of all reimbursement related activities for inpatient and outpatient services, including insurance verification, coding, claims submission, collections, and reporting.
- David Nefussy to Vice President of Payor Relations. David joined us in 2017 as Vice President of Business Development. In his new role, he will negotiate agreements with managed care organizations, third-party payors, and private insurance companies, while overseeing all contracting, credentialing, network management and provider relation activities.
This veteran group has been long-time leaders for Spectrum, consistently delivering innovative and insightful contributions to our company and its programs. The strategic repositioning of responsibilities will allow us to strengthen our existing services and position ourselves for continued future growth. In each of their new roles, they will continue to navigate the constantly changing healthcare landscape while ensuring the delivery of superior care to our clients. We look forward to introducing each of them to you here in our Leadership Series.
For more information about working at Spectrum Health Systems, visit the careers page on our website.
