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Joseph A. Zaccagnino, President and Chief Executive Officer of Yale-New Haven Hospital and of Yale New Haven Health System, Honored as John D. Thompson Distinguished Visiting Fellow

On April 7-8, the Health Management Program hosted Joseph A. Zaccagnino, M.P.H. ‘70, President and Chief Executive Officer of Yale-New Haven Hospital (YNHH) and of Yale New Haven Health System (YNHHS), as the John D. Thompson Distinguished Visiting Fellow of 2005.

From 1978-1991, Zaccagnino served as Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer (COO) of YNHH. During his tenure, he was responsible for the construction of the Children's Hospital as well as the renovation of adult patient care areas. He was appointed to his current position in 1991, and YNHH and YNHHS have excelled under his leadership. YNHHS has become the largest and most comprehensive integrated health care delivery system in Connecticut. YNHHS operates Yale-New Haven, Bridgeport and Greenwich Hospitals, and is affiliated with Westerly Hospital in Rhode Island. YNHHS is a leader in redesigning the delivery and financing of high quality, cost-effective health care. YNHH serves as the primary teaching hospital for the Yale University School of Medicine, as a tertiary and quaternary patient care facility for the State of Connecticut and Southern New England, and as a general acute care hospital for the Greater New Haven area. Zaccagnino has been a lecturer in the Department of Epidemiology and Public Health's Division of Health Policy and Administration since 1974.

At the award dinner held on April 7, Zaccagnino shared his career history and views of the future of health care. His speech focused on how instrumental John D. Thompson, R.N., M.S., professor and director of EPH's Program in Hospital Administration and Associate Dean for Planning at the medical school, had been in guiding him, both as a student and as an alumnus. Zaccagnino's interest in health care began with a football injury in college and with his close association with his father-in-law, an orthopedic surgeon. Thompson took Zaccagnino under his wing and guided him to YNHH for his residency and first job. Zaccagnino credits Thompson and the two CEOs with whom he served at YNHH with mentoring him and serving as role models. He also credits his staff, especially Marna Borgstrom, MPH '79, who has served as his COO, with making possible the teamwork that has characterized his administration and the extraordinary financial success the hospital has enjoyed in an era of economic vagaries. When asked how he views the future of health care in this country, he said he feels we must preserve quality, expand access and keep costs in check. He believes this can be accomplished by expanding existing hospital systems and the economies of scale and outreach that result, focusing on management evaluation systems like six sigma developed by successful corporations, and advocating for reforms of programs like Medicare. Zaccagnino spent the following day meeting with students in the Health Management Program one-on-one and in groups.

The John D. Thompson Distinguished Visiting Fellow program honors Professor John D. Thompson and his distinguished contribution as an educator and researcher in health administration, including his pioneering work in developing the Medicare payment system. The fellowship program brings a leader in health administration to the Department of Epidemiology and Public Health each year to share their career experiences with students and discuss emerging challenges in health administration. Recent John D. Thompson Distinguished Visiting Fellows include Nancy Johnson, Congresswoman (2004), Gail Wilenksy, Ph.D., Senior Scientist at Project HOPE (2003), Elaine Ullian, M.P.H., President and CEO of Boston City Hospital (2002) and Gail Warden, President and CEO of the Henry Ford Health System (2001).