Nuvance Health names Dr. Jeffrey Nicastro chief medical officer/network chair of surgery

Dr. Jeffrey Nicastro has been named chief medical officer and network chair of surgery for Nuvance Health, effective immediately.

Nicastro served as the system”™s interim chief medical officer (CMO) for the past six months, in conjunction with serving as Nuvance”™s network chair of surgery; he has held the latter position since joining Nuvance in January 2019.

As CMO, Nicastro will have primary responsibility for continuing to shape the culture and delivery of care for the system, with a focus on building and strengthening positive and mutually supportive working relationships.

He will work in close partnership and collaboration with Dr. Chris Lehrach in his role as the president of the Nuvance Health Medical Practice by supporting growth efforts to drive quality, expand clinical services, enhance the patient experience and improve physician/APP and staff engagement.

He will also work closely with Dr. Diane Kantaros, chief quality officer, in developing standards for quality and safety across the system”™s network and with Kerry Eaton, chief operating officer, in driving strong administrative dyad partnerships.

Nuvance Health President and CEO Dr. John Murphy said that Nicastro “brings with him years of outstanding experience and deep expertise. He is resolute in his commitment to providing exceptional care across the many communities we serve.

“This is both a challenging and exciting time for us as a system and providers of health care,” Murphy continued. “Such times demand great organizational leadership and personal resiliency, which is reflected in Dr. Nicastro”™s nature and work.”

Nicastro, who has more than 30 years of clinical, leadership, and military experience, will report directly to Murphy.

The new CMO will also work closely with the more than 3,000-member medical staff and will have direct responsibility for managing the network chairs as well as Nuvance”™s Heart, Cancer and Neuroscience clinical leaders to advance and grow its clinical services.

In addition, Nicastro will provide oversight for medical affairs standardization, Medical Education, Global Health, Simulation, Research & Innovation and the development of a new teaching academy for physicians to be named in honor of his predecessor, the late Dr. Patricia Tietjen, who died in January.

Nuvance Health consists of Danbury Hospital, New Milford Hospital, Norwalk Hospital and Sharon Hospital in Connecticut, and Northern Dutchess Hospital, Putnam Hospital and Vassar Brothers Medical Center in New York.