Fletcher Allen Health Care announced today that it has appointed   Eileen Whalen, M.H.A., R.N., to the position of president and chief operating officer effective early 2015.  The appointment was made following a national search.

Whalen will report to John Brumsted, M.D., who will retain the position of chief executive officer at Fletcher Allen as well as his position as president and chief executive officer, Fletcher Allen Partners, the four-hospital integrated health network serving Vermont and northern New York. Whalen’s position combines the role of president with that of the chief operating officer.

“Eileen brings considerable experience both as a nurse and senior health care administrator to Fletcher Allen,” said Dr. Brumsted.   “For the past two-and-a-half years, I have had joint responsibility for leading both Fletcher Allen and Fletcher Allen Partners. As Partners grows in complexity I need to turn my focus more towards leading the network. I am placing the oversight of Fletcher Allen Health Care in good hands.

“I’m especially pleased,” Dr. Brumsted continued, “that we will have a highly-qualified clinical team led by Eileen, a nationally-recognized trauma nurse, and our UVM Medical Group President, Claude Deschamps, M.D., a prominent surgeon, guiding the day-to-day operations and business functions of our academic medical center.”

“My husband and I are looking forward to our move to Burlington and I am excited to be joining the talented team at Fletcher Allen,” stated Whalen. “I’m looking forward to leading an organization that is so well-positioned to thrive in this rapidly-changing health care environment.”

Whalen has more than 35 years of experience in health care. She comes to Fletcher Allen from Harborview Medical Center in Seattle, WA, where she served as the chief executive.  Harborview is the largest public hospital in the State of Washington and an academic medical center part of the UW Medicine Network. Harborview is nationally known for trauma care and serves as the only Level 1 adult and pediatric trauma and burn center for the states of Washington, Alaska, Montana and Idaho.

Prior to taking the position at Harborview, she served as executive vice president at the University of Arizona Medical Center, Tucson, AZ. Whalen has also held numerous leadership positions in trauma, emergency and critical care services. She is a nationally recognized trauma systems expert and a founding member and past president of the Society of Trauma Nurses. Whalen also served as editor, Journal of Trauma Nursing from 1993-2006.

Whalen is a graduate of Niagara University, Niagara Falls, NY, where she received a Bachelor’s of Science in Nursing. She also holds a Master in Health and Hospital Administration degree from Chapman University, Sacramento, CA.