March 12, 2015, Morristown, NJ – Atlantic Health System welcomes Brian A. Gragnolati, FACHE, as the new president and chief executive officer, effective May 4, 2015.
Gragnolati joins Atlantic Health System at an exciting time of growth for the organization. A collaborative, strategic leader, he brings extensive experience working with communities, patients, physicians, nurses and those who pay for health care services to deliver better and safer care, improve health outcomes and provide better value. His prior experience will be critical as Atlantic Health System focuses its efforts on further developing the capabilities of the organization to thrive during this time of significant change in the health care industry.
“We are thrilled to announce Brian Gragnolati as the new leader of our robust health care system,” said Robert A. Toohey, Vice Chair, Atlantic Health System Board of Trustees, who chaired the search committee. “After a rigorous and inclusive search process, we have selected a uniquely qualified candidate with the precise background and expertise needed to usher Atlantic Health System into a new era of health care delivery and ensure continued growth.”
Gragnolati serves as senior vice president, Community Division, at Johns Hopkins Medicine in Baltimore, Maryland. There, he is operationally responsible for three owned and two affiliated community hospitals, numerous ambulatory and surgery centers and community physician integration. He also leads the delivery system business development activities in the United States and co-leads Hopkins’s efforts to expand its insurance products, redefine and grow it geographic footprint and develop models of clinical and financial integration.
Gragnolati’s other leadership roles were at WellSpan Health in York, Pennsylvania where he served as President of York Hospital; Medical Center Hospital of Vermont in Burlington; and Baystate Medical Center in Springfield, Massachusetts. He has had the benefit of having both strong academic and community-based hospital experiences.
“Having worked in health care my entire professional career, I have seen first-hand the difference we can make in people’s lives. As leaders of health care systems, this is our purpose and our privilege and what I love most about our profession” said Gragnolati. “Atlantic Health System is well positioned to execute on its vision of empowering communities to be the healthiest in the nation and reaching unprecedented new heights in health care delivery and I cannot wait to get started.”
Current president and CEO, Joseph P. Trunfio, will retire after more than 20 years of service. After announcing his departure last September, the Atlantic Health System Board of Trustees embarked on a comprehensive national search for his replacement.
“Working together with our departing CEO and our incoming leader, the Board of Trustees will ensure a swift and smooth transition of roles,” explained Karen Kessler, Chair, Atlantic Health System Board of Trustees. “We will deeply miss Joe, whose steadfast leadership propelled Atlantic Health System to become a regionally and nationally renowned health care provider, but we are enthusiastic about our future under Brian’s guidance.”
Gragnolati is a fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives and has served on numerous community boards. He is current board member of the American Hospital Association (AHA) and serves on their Operations Committee and Committee on Research. He also is a current member of the Maryland Hospital Association (MHA) Executive Committee and received Maryland’s AHA Partnership for Action Grassroots Champion award in 2007 and again in 2015. He also serves on the Montgomery County, Maryland Business Development Corporation after serving as its inaugural chairman.
He was a member of the Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) Implementation Committee, which studied the impact of the relocation of medical activities from the Walter Reed Army Medical Center in DC to the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda (now the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center).
He received a bachelor of science in health systems analysis from the University of Connecticut and a Master of Business Administration from Western New England College in Massachusetts.
About Atlantic Health System
Atlantic Health System, headquartered in Morristown, New Jersey, is one of the largest non-profit health care systems in New Jersey. Atlantic Health System has created a Trusted Network of Caring™. Our promise to our communities is that anyone who enters our system will receive the right care, at the right quality, at the right time, at the right place and at the right cost. Our network includes Morristown Medical Center in Morristown, NJ; Overlook Medical Center in Summit, NJ; Newton Medical Center in Newton, NJ; Chilton Medical Center in Pompton Plains, NJ; and Goryeb Children’s Hospital in Morristown, NJ, as well as Atlantic Rehabilitation, and Atlantic Home Care and Hospice. It also includes its subsidiary, Atlantic Ambulance Corporation. Atlantic Health System comprises 1,599 licensed beds, more than 14,000 employees and more than 4,000 physicians. Atlantic Health System has a medical school affiliation with the Sidney Kimmel Medical College at Thomas Jefferson University; a Major Clinical Affiliate of Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey; part of Atlantic Accountable Care Organization, one of the largest ACOs in the nation, and is a member of AllSpire Health Partners. Learn more about our Trusted Network of Caring™ at Atlantic Health System >