HFMA 2017: Bryan Health’s Carol Friesen takes over as HFMA chair

The annual Healthcare Financial Management Association (HFMA) conference includes the induction of the organization’s new board chair, its chief elected officer. For 2017-18, the position belongs to Carol Friesen, MPH, vice president of health system services at Bryan Health in Lincoln, Nebraska.

Friesen brings many years of experience in leadership positions focusing on rural health, having previously served as president and CEO of Crete Area Medical Center in Crete, Neb., from 2007 to 2013 and CFO of Boone County Health Center in Albion, Neb., from 1999 to 2007. In her current role at Bryan Health, she oversees its network of critical access hospitals, physician services, medical education and workflow consulting. She’s also served as a member of the HFMA board since 2012.

“Carol is a committed, passionate leader, and we’re excited to welcome her as our new chair,” HFMA President and CEO Joseph J. Fifer said in a statement. “She brings an extensive background in healthcare finance to this new leadership position. That expertise, coupled with Carol’s experience in working with physicians, will be tremendous assets to HFMA as we continue our efforts to foster collaborative relationships among providers, physicians and health plans that will lead to high-quality, low-cost health care and healthier communities.”

Her successor will be chair-elect Kevin Brennan, executive vice president of Finance and CFO of Geisinger Health System in Danville, Penn. The 2017-18 secretary-treasurer, another position Frisen once held, will be Michael Allen, CFO of OSF Healthcare in Peoria, Illinois.

Additionally, three new board members will begin three-year terms ending in 2020: Dennis E. Dahlen, a healthcare finance executive at Banner Health in Phoenix; Marc Scher, Partner-in-Charge of KPMG LLP’s U.S. and Global Healthcare Audit Practice, based in Orange County, California; and T. Carley Williams, Partner at BKD LLP in Tulsa, Oklahoma.