Furst Group Places President of the Denver Hospice

October 4, 2023 – Executive recruitment firmĀ Furst Group, which serves the healthcare and insurance industries, recently assisted in the recruitment of Ernesto Lopez as the new president of the Denver Hospice.

Mr. Lopez is an accomplished healthcare executive with over 20 years of healthcare leadership experience. Most recently he served as president and chief executive officer at Hospice of Washington County in Maryland, a community based non-profit hospice and palliative care organization. Prior to that, he served in the same capacity for a large non-profit, faith-based hospice provider that is part of the AdventHealth System, and is considered the largest Medicare provider in the country. Mr. Lopezā€™s healthcare experience also includes serving as chief nursing officer and chief operating officer for two different community-based hospitals within the AdventHealth Network of Central Florida.

ā€œWe are excited to have Ernesto Lopez take on the role of president of the Denver Hospice,ā€ said Tim Bowen, president and CEO of Care Synergy. ā€œErnesto is an exceptional leader who brings to the position a combination of energy, sensitivity, and proven leadership accomplishments in the field. We know he will make a significant impact in building relationships within the Denver community as well as unlocking the potential for the Denver Hospice in its service to the community.ā€

Strong Experience

ā€œAfter an extensive national search, we are pleased to have identified a hospice leader that will bring the level of experience and track record that Ernesto has, to actively partner with the Denver community as well as provide hospice and palliative services that are best-in-class,ā€ said Brad Baumgartner, Denver Hospice board chair.

Mr. Lopez earned an MBA from Nova Southeastern University and a bachelorā€™s degree in nursing from the University of Miami. He has been an active member of several designated and professional associations including the American College of Healthcare Executives through which he has attained fellow status (FACHE) as wells as being selected as a Thomas C. Dolan Diversity Scholar this past year.

Founded in 1978, the Denver Hospice serves more than 4,000 hospice and 1,200 palliative care patients and their families every year throughout nine Denver counties. Its interdisciplinary team of experts provide care in patientsā€™ homes, the non-profitā€™s state-of-the-art inpatient care center, retirement communities, skilled nursing homes, and other locations.

Related: FurstĀ Group Recruits Chief People Officer for Medica

Denver-based Care Synergy, founded in 2014, is a network of not-for-profit community-based hospice, home health, and palliative care organizations serving Coloradoā€™s Front Range, including the Colorado Visiting Nurse Association, the Denver Hospice, Pathways, Pikes Peak Hospice and Palliative Care, and soon to include Colorado PACE. Care Synergy affiliate organizations operate as distinct organizations while sharing best practices.

Respected Recruiters

Furst Group, headquartered in Rockford, IL, partners with many of the premier healthcare organizations in the world, from providers and payers to life-science companies and private equity/venture capital firms. While Furst Groupā€™s roots are in managed care, the firm continues to be one of the nationā€™s leading executive search partners to health systems, hospitals, academic medical centers, post-acute, and hospice and palliative care facilities. Its work with insurers stretches back to the HMO era, yet the firm also teams with life science, pharmaceutical, and medical device companies.

Furst Group also has offices inĀ Phoenix, AZ; Radnor, PA; San Francisco; Brentwood, TN; Chicago; Irving, TX; Minneapolis, MN; Seattle; St. Louis; and Washington, D.C.

Earlier this year, Furst Group placed Richard Greene as CFO for Clever Care Health Plan in Huntington Beach, CA. Mr. Greene brings extensive knowledge and experience as a financial healthcare executive. He previously served as chief operating officer/chief financial officer at AppleCare Medical Management (a subsidiary of Optum) and provided financial leadership from 1996 to 2010 as CFO at Arcadian Management Services, Syntiro HealthCare Services, and PacifiCare Health Systems.

ā€œFrom day one at Clever Care, our mission has been clear: make culturally-sensitive healthcare the norm,ā€ said Myong Lee, co-founder and CEO at Clever Care Health Plan. ā€œOur continual growth reaffirms the need for Medicare beneficiaries to have healthcare plans that uniquely meet their cultural needs. We are thrilled to have Richard join the executive leadership team and are excited for what the future holds.ā€

Clever Care is a Medicare Advantage plan company. Founded in 2018, the organizationā€™s grassroots movement, made up of seasoned healthcare experts and community advocates, provides Medicare beneficiaries with high-quality, culturally-sensitive Medicare options built on the customs, values, and linguistic needs of the communities they serve. Clever Care is fueled by the benefits of Western and Eastern medicine, backed by extensive networks of in-language service providers, doctors, specialists, and advisors.

Related:Ā FurstĀ Group Recruits Chief Nursing Officer for Corewell Health East

Contributed by Scott A. Scanlon, Editor-in-Chief; Dale M. Zupsansky, Managing Editor; and Stephen Sawicki, Managing Editor ā€“ Hunt Scanlon Media

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