UM UCH Announces New President and Chief Executive Officer

BEL AIR, Md. (December 7, 2021) – Following a comprehensive and extensive search, University of Maryland Upper Chesapeake Health (UM UCH) today announced that Elizabeth Wise, MSN, MBA, has been selected as the organization's new President and Chief Executive Officer, effective January 10, 2022.

"Elizabeth is an empathetic and deeply experienced health care executive with a record of accomplishment and a track record for building lasting relationships among peers and colleagues," said Mohan Suntha, MD, MBA, President and Chief Executive Officer of the University of Maryland Medical System, UM UCH's parent organization. "We are extremely excited to welcome her to the University of Maryland Medical System family."

"I believe that we should put the patient at the center of every decision that we make," said Wise. "I am joining an organization with a focus on high quality, patient-centered care and a highly collaborative and dedicated board of directors and leadership team. I look forward to being part of the Harford County community and working with colleagues at Upper Chesapeake Health and the University of Maryland Medical System in this next chapter of the organization's rich history."

Since 2017, Wise has served as President of Lehigh Valley Hospital-Pocono and Senior Vice President, Operations, Lehigh Valley Health Network (LVH), which includes Lehigh Valley Hospital–Pocono and Lehigh Valley Hospital–Dickson City. She was named President of Lehigh Valley Hospital-Dickson City in 2020 and President, North Region in 2021. During her time with Lehigh Valley Health Network, Wise has been a driving force in helping the system to expand and transition through numerous changes in the way health care is delivered in Pennsylvania's Lehigh Valley and the surrounding region. Her time with LVH, as well as with large, complex health care organizations in New Jersey, Delaware and Washington D.C., have provided Wise with the right blend of experience and tenacity to deliver on our shared vision for UM Upper Chesapeake Health.

Wise earned a Master of Science in Nursing and a Master of Business Administration from Rutgers University, and a Bachelor of Science in Nursing at Seton Hall University.  She is a member and fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives.

"Elizabeth's achievements, experience, and proven leadership skills are first class and she has a comprehensive understanding of all aspects of the health care industry, including its unique managerial, financial, operational, and medical challenges," said Bryan Kelly, Board Chair of UM UCH. "Elizabeth has a demonstrated commitment to teamwork and quality patient care and a passionate conviction that successful medical treatment includes the attentive human touch that patients and their families so deserve. Our board and I very much look forward to working with Elizabeth to help ensure that throughout the coming years UM UCH is recognized as the medical crown jewel of our Harford and Cecil County communities."

Earlier this year, current UM UCH President & CEO Lyle Sheldon announced his decision to retire after more than three decades with the organization, including 26 years as president and chief executive officer. "Lyle's long tenure has laid the foundation for a prosperous future for UM UCH and we are forever grateful for his exceptional service during a long and very distinguished career," said Dr. Suntha.

UM UCH has been at the forefront of UMMS' COVID-19 pandemic response, treating the System's first COVID-positive patient in March 2020. "They have risen to the occasion and served as a trusted voice and anchor to a community facing challenges that were unimaginable just a few years earlier," said Dr. Suntha. "Yet even in the face of the pandemic, UM UCH has also pressed forward with its long term strategy, including deeper integration with UMMS processes and IT platforms, as well as the construction of a new freestanding medical facility in Aberdeen, which is a vision for the future of how non-hospital care will be delivered across Maryland."

UM UCH operates UM Upper Chesapeake Medical Center in Bel Air and UM Harford Memorial Hospital in Havre de Grace, and is the second largest private employer in Harford County. Its more than 3,600 team members and nearly 500 medical staff physicians serve residents of Harford County, eastern Baltimore County, and western Cecil County. UM UCH hospitals had over 15,500 admissions, provided care for more than 65,400 emergency medicine patients and over 117,000 outpatient visits, and performed more than 9,700 surgical procedures in FY 2021. UM UCH also operates The Upper Chesapeake Health Foundation, the Klein Ambulatory Care Center, two medical office buildings on its Bel Air campus, the Senator Bob Hooper House and the Patricia D. and M. Scot Kaufman Cancer Center and numerous physician offices. UM UCH is also an operating partner of the Klein Family Harford Crisis Center in Bel Air.

About University of Maryland Upper Chesapeake Health

University of Maryland Upper Chesapeake Health includes the University of Maryland Upper Chesapeake Medical Center and the Patricia D. and M. Scot Kaufman Cancer Center on its Bel Air campus. Most recently, it opened The Klein Family Harford Crisis Center in Bel Air offering services for behavioral health. The Senator Bob Hooper House in Forest Hill is an assisted living facility that specializes in hospice. The University of Maryland Harford Memorial Hospital has been operating in the community for over a century and is located in Havre de Grace. The leading health care system and second largest private employer in Harford County, UM Upper Chesapeake Health offers a broad range of health care services, specialty care, technology and facilities to the residents of northeastern Maryland. Visit www.umms.org/uch for more information.

About the University of Maryland Medical System

The University of Maryland Medical System (UMMS) is a university-based regional health care system focused on serving the health care needs of Maryland, bringing innovation, discovery and research to the care we provide and educating the state's future physician and health care professionals through our partnership with the University of Maryland School of Medicine and University of Maryland, Baltimore professional schools (Nursing, Pharmacy, Social Work and Dentistry) in Baltimore. As one of the largest private employers in the State, the health system's more than 29,500 employees and 4,000 affiliated physicians provide primary and specialty care in more than 150 locations, including 13 hospitals and 9 University of Maryland Urgent Care centers. The UMMS flagship academic campus, the University of Maryland Medical Center in downtown Baltimore, is recognized regionally and nationally for excellence and innovation in specialized care. Our acute care and specialty rehabilitation hospitals serve urban, suburban and rural communities and are located in 13 counties across the State. For more information, visit www.umms.org.