Kaiser Permanente announced late last year that Ruth Brinkley is the new president of Kaiser Foundation Health Plan and Hospitals of the Northwest, which includes Oregon and markets in Vancouver and Longview/Kelso, Washington.
Brinkley comes to Kaiser Permanente from KentuckyOne Health, Kentucky’s largest integrated health system, where she has served as CEO since 2012. KentuckyOne is a division of Catholic Health Initiatives, one of the nation’s largest nonprofit health systems.
“Ruth’s deep experience in integrated and nonprofit health care systems makes her a great fit for this important leadership role,” said Kaiser Permanente Chairman and CEO Bernard J. Tyson. “Her commitment to improving access to high-quality care is very reflective of Kaiser Permanente’s mission. Ruth understands the ever-growing demands of consumers. I look forward to her contributions in the Northwest and to our entire organization.”
KentuckyOne was created in 2012 by the merger of Jewish Hospital & Saints Mary and Elizabeth HealthCare and Saint Joseph Health System. In 2013, the University of Louisville Hospital and the James Graham Brown Cancer Center joined KentuckyOne. Brinkley is credited with successfully overseeing post-merger systems integration and optimization, along with expanding signature programs in heart and cancer care for the benefit of citizens across Kentucky.
Brinkley, who began her health care career as a nurse, has also served as president and CEO of Carondelet Health Network in Tucson, Arizona, and as president and CEO of Memorial Health Care System in Chattanooga, Tennessee.
Outside of leading hospitals and health systems, Ms. Brinkley is a founding member of the Women Business Leaders of the U.S. Health Care Industry Foundation. She was also recently named a member of the Kentucky Health Benefit Exchange Advisory Board and is on the board of DePaul University in Chicago.
Throughout her career, Ms. Brinkley has been recognized for her excellence in leadership. She has received the National Association of Health Services Executives’ Senior Healthcare Executive Award, the Chattanooga Area Manager of the Year Award and the Unbought and Unbossed Award from Girls, Inc., which recognizes women who have had a significant impact on improving the lives of girls and other women. I
In 2012, Becker’s Hospital Review named her on its list of 120 Women Hospital and Health System Leaders to Know and its list of 300 Hospital and Health System Leaders to Know.