Clinical leaders are a driving force in health care transformation. Their contributions are occasionally difficult to measure, but their impact on patients, hospitals, and communities is profound.
SCP Health is proud to count many exceptional Medical Directors, Lead Nurse Practitioners, and Lead Physician Assistants among its ranks. Each year, we recognize a deserving few whose superb skills, attributes, and performance have made a distinct difference.
Meet the 2022 winners of SCP Health’s “Excellence in Leadership” award. We look forward to what these emerging medical leaders will continue to do in the future. To view our press release honoring these medical leaders, please click here.
Foster Kordisch, III, MD
With an uncanny knack for finding top-tier talent, Dr. Foster Kordisch has contributed to the growth of his team and the development of new leaders at Ochsner Lafayette General Medical Center. In addition to personally recruiting clinicians, Dr. Kordisch is a driving force in developing complex care plans for difficult patients, consistently maintains high scores on the Facility Variance Report despite challenges, and continuously collaborates with hospital administration and medical and nursing staff across departments, all while undergoing a loss of treatment space due to major renovations.
Herschel Kessler, DO
Covering multiple hospitals with varying resources and acuity in the Atrium Health network, Dr. Herschel Kessler has uniformly elevated performance and ensured the utmost quality of patient care. Dr. Kessler has created care models to support local conditions at each of his emergency departments, collaborating with both administration and his team to seek and understand information before turning those insights into interventions across the board. His mentorship of new directors, clinicians, and residents is instrumental in developing new leaders at his facilities.
David Farcy, MD
An outstanding clinical leader, Dr. David Farcy sets high expectations for himself and his team at Mount Sinai Medical Center. Well-known and respected throughout the national and international emergency medicine community for his renowned research papers, Dr. Farcy continues to make a significant impact in his own community, putting patient care first, improving quality metrics, coming in to help when needed, and sacrificing his own shifts for his clinicians during low volume times.
Jessica Amburgey, PA
A leader dedicated to clinical practice, Jessica Amburgey embodies collaboration in her role as Lead Physician Assistant for multiple ARH sites. Jessica has been the driving force within the ARH system for independent practice for nurse practitioners and physician assistants in several facilities, onboarding all of SCP Health’s NPs and PAs within Kentucky and ensuring they have the tools necessary to be successful. Her commitment to excellence and outstanding clinical performance led to her appointment as Medical Director for ARH Our Lady of the Way.
Devjit Roy, MD
When Dr. Devjit Roy accepted the Medical Director role at Nathan Littauer Hospital and Nursing Home, he stepped into a position unwanted by many others, and he drove the evolution of the entire facility. Within two years, he has built relationships, maintained a positive attitude, and garnered so much respect, that he was appointed Chief of Medicine. Dr. Roy’s investment in delivering high-quality care to both the patients and clinicians of the hospital and nursing home has brought inspiration and passion to his team and revitalized his facility.
Joshua Watts, DO
Flexible, collaborative, and a joy to work with, Dr. Joshua Watts doesn’t react to negative situations in his role at Whitesburg ARH Hospital; instead, he looks for solutions, involving all those around him in his mission to provide better care. Dr. Watts goes above and beyond his normal duties, taking on roles in the MediTech and COVID-19 system teams, acting as a volunteer trauma manager, and becoming a trainer in a critical care course. His initiative has driven dramatic improvement across his multiple facilities.
Kimberly Fuller, NP
As the Lead Nurse Practitioner at Baptist Medical Center, Kimberly Fuller never asks anything from her team that she is not capable or willing to do herself. Her clinical acumen is recognized in the emergency department and beyond and she has set herself apart through adept management of scheduling challenges and by taking on an additional role to manage and educate other clinicians at local urgent cares, instilling more sites with ED-specific skills.
Trevor McGinley, MD
A courageous and agile leader, Dr. Trevor McGinley has made his mark as a recognized problem solver at Garnet Health Medical Center – Catskills. Dr. McGinley exhibits an uncanny ability to adeptly manage resources, inspire teams, and collaborate across departments to drive improvement and transformations. As Medical Director at a site over three hours from his home, he commands respect and appreciation, stabilizing his team and improving the overall care in his department.
Robert (Garrett) Lewis, MD
An innovator in the face of adversity, Dr. Robert (Garrett) Lewis, of CHI St. Vincent Infirmary Medical Center, not only led his emergency department team in developing new processes and methods to see patients in triage and the waiting room, but also recognized the mental health crisis amongst patients in his community, developing a psychiatric observation program run by ED clinicians in conjunction with local psychiatric clinicians. Dr. Lewis’s continuous engagement, clear expectations, and accountability have achieved noticeable improvements in quality, metrics, and culture.
Lauren Py, MD
A mentor, coach, and outstanding clinical performer, Dr. Lauren Py has elevated the status of both Holston Valley Medical Center and Indian Path Community Hospital. Dr. Py consistently works collaboratively with everyone, serving as a unifying presence who makes everyone around her feel engaged and valued by navigating and coalescing different groups of people and distilling large quantities of information into a focused action plan. Her commitment to investing in improvement at every level has had an overwhelming impact.
Kristopher Sutherly, MD
A hands-on and highly-involved leader, Dr. Kristopher Sutherly has driven transformation in the Christus Spohn Hospital Corpus Christi – Shoreline‘s emergency medicine department. Dr. Sutherly embodies SCP Health’s core values – agility, collaboration, courage, and respect – working collaboratively across clinical departments with the hospital administration and medical and nursing staff. Because of his leadership, the ED has come through exceptionally difficult times while markedly improving both quality and reputation.
Monzer Saad, DO – Rookie of the Year
Only six months into his position in the Lima Memorial Health System, Dr. Monzer Saad has already demonstrated an unprecedented ability to lead by example, earning this year’s Rookie of the Year distinction. Dr. Saad has not only worked through significant staffing issues, but he also continuously pitches in wherever he is most valuable, from flexing seamlessly into the ICU during times of severe need to consistently bridging the gap between emergency, inpatient, and critical care departments.
