CCHA - Key Persons

Job Titles:

• CEO
• President
• President and CEO of the California Children 's Hospital
• President and CEO, California Children 's Hospital Association

Ann-Louise Kuhns is President and CEO of the California Children's Hospital Association. She has over 30 years of experience in senior management positions both inside and outside of California state government. Prior to joining CCHA, she served as Vice President of State Affairs for Anthem Blue Cross. Before that, she was Associate Director of State Affairs for Bristol-Myers Squibb. She began her career at California's non-partisan Legislative Analyst's Office; served as an Assistant Secretary of the Health and Welfare Agency under Governor Pete Wilson, and during the 1990's led California's transition to Medicaid managed care as the State's Medi-Cal Managed Care Division Chief Ms. Kuhns holds a bachelor's degree from the University of Chicago and a Master of Public Policy from the University of California, Berkeley.

Job Titles:

• Vice President of Finance

Prior to joining CCHA, Ms. Ponder spent over twenty years in state civil service engaging in fiscal policy, accounting, program implementation, process development, data analysis, project management, and program monitoring for the California Student Aid Commission, Department of Aging, and Department of Health Care Services (DHCS). For nearly the past thirteen years, she held various roles at DHCS, Health Care Financing, overseeing billions of dollars in safety net programs, including oversight of the implementation of the Diagnosis Related Group reimbursement methodology, managing the Disproportionate Share Hospital program, and involved with the Hospital Quality Assurance Fee, and a variety of other Medi-Cal supplemental payment programs.

Job Titles:

• Chairman

As the new President and Chief Executive Officer of Rady Children's Hospital and Health Center, Dr. Patrick Frias leads one of the premier pediatric hospitals in the nation - ranked by U.S. News & World Report as one of America's best surveyed. Rady Children's is a 551-bed pediatric care facility providing the largest source of comprehensive pediatric medical and behavioral health services in San Diego, Southern Riverside and Imperial counties and the region's only designated pediatric trauma center. Dr. Frias most recently served as Chief Operating Officer of Children's Healthcare of Atlanta. As COO, Dr. Frias oversaw operations of all three Children's hospitals and 29 neighborhood locations. He was also responsible for all service lines and physicians employed or managed by Children's, representing over 60 pediatric specialties ranging from primary care to the most highly specialized pediatric services. Dr. Frias is an accomplished, Board-certified pediatric cardiologist and previously served on the pediatric faculty at the Emory University School of Medicine. He is a Fellow of both the American College of Cardiology and the American Academy of Pediatrics. Dr. Frias holds a bachelor's degree in Theology from Creighton University, and completed medical school at the University of Nebraska College of Medicine. He completed his pediatric residency at Duke University Medical Center before completing his pediatric cardiology and electrophysiology fellowships at Vanderbilt University Medical Center. Dr. Frias and his wife have a daughter and three sons.

Job Titles:

• President & CEO, Children 's Hospital of Orange County

As the President and Chief Executive Officer of CHOC Children's, Kimberly Chavalas Cripe leads one of the top pediatric healthcare systems in the nation. CHOC Children's Hospital is the only hospital in California to earn the Gold Level CAPE (California Awards for Performance Excellence) Award from the California Council for Excellence (CCE). CHOC Children's Hospital joined the elite ranks of the nation's hospitals that have earned Magnet recognition for nursing excellence by the American Nurses Credentialing Center, and its pediatric intensive care unit is the first in the nation to be recognized with the Pediatric Beacon Award for Critical Care Excellence from the American Association of Critical-Care Nurses. A 2013 Leapfrog Top Hospital, CHOC Children's was also recognized for clinical excellence by U.S. News & World Report. Kim has been with CHOC Children's since 1991 as the Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, and was named President and Chief Executive Officer in 1998. Prior to joining CHOC, she was with Humana Inc. (now HCA) where she held a series of progressively responsible hospital, regional and corporate positions in areas including strategic planning, business development, physician alignment, marketing, public affairs, and hospital and health plan operations. Kim conducted her undergraduate studies at the University of Southern California and the University of South Florida, and received her Master's degree in Public Administration, Health Services Management, from Golden Gate University.

Job Titles:

• CEO
• President

Job Titles:

• President of UCSF Benioff Children 's Hospital
• President, UCSF Benioff Children 's Hospital Oakland

Matthew Cook is the president of UCSF Benioff Children's Hospitals and senior vice president of Children's Services at UCSF Health. In this role he oversees the strategic direction, operations and clinical services for all pediatric services in both Oakland and San Francisco, while partnering with academic programs and serving as a core member of the UCSF Health leadership team. Cook came to UCSF from Indianapolis, where he served as president of Riley Children's Health and chief strategy officer for Indiana University Health (IU Health), the state's largest health system. There he provided strategic direction and leadership for pediatric services throughout IU Health, including the 314-bed Riley Hospital for Children, the 101-bed maternal and newborn health program at IU Methodist Hospital, and the 39-bed pediatric program at IU Health North Hospital, with a particular focus on improving access to care for expectant mothers and reducing infant mortality. During his time at Riley, Cook launched an alliance with the Indianapolis Children's Museum to promote healthy lifestyle habits for children and families, steered an affiliation with the Children's Hospital of Zhejiang University School of Medicine in China to support the development of a pediatric heart transplant program, and helped foster industry and academic collaboration. Under his leadership, physician engagement increased by 20 percent, and the hospital successfully met their foundation's five-year capital campaign. His term as president also saw dramatic improvements in the U.S. News & World Report rankings, achieving the hospital's best performance to date. Cook previously served as executive vice president of Strategic Planning and Business Development at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, and spent nine years as a principal at The Chartis Group, a health care consulting group based in Chicago. He holds an MBA from New York University, where he was class valedictorian, and graduated cum laude from The Wharton School, with a Bachelor of Science degree in Economics and a Bachelor of Arts in German. He is an accomplished public speaker, serves on the Children's Hospital Association's Board of Trustees and is a member of CHA's Public Policy Committee.

Job Titles:

• Vice President of Government Affairs

Ms. Morton directs CCHA's legislative and regulatory policy activities, and supports the Government Affairs Executives for the Association's eight non-profit, freestanding children's hospital members. Prior to joining CCHA, she spent six years advocating on behalf of employers at the California Chamber of Commerce. Mira began her career in public policy as a legislative advocate and regional director at TechAmerica, a national trade association of technology companies. Before that, she worked for five years as a middle school teacher in Cupertino, California. Mira has a B.S. in psychology and a M.A. in education from Santa Clara University. She also has a J.D. from the McGeorge School of Law, University of the Pacific.

Job Titles:

• President and CEO, Lucile Packard Children 's Hospital

Paul A. King joined Stanford Children's Health in January 2019 bringing with him a distinguished career of more than 30 years as a health care executive, including leadership positions at several nationally recognized academic medical centers. Prior to joining Stanford Children's Health King led the University of Michigan's C.S. Mott Children's Hospital and Von Voigtlander Women's Hospital as Executive Director. During his tenure, his strong leadership skills guided the strategic growth of the University of Michigan's children's and women's programs and services. Prior to joining C.S. Mott Children's Hospital, King served as president and CEO for the Pediatric Management Group, a 550-physician academic pediatric subspecialty group practice affiliated with Children's Hospital Los Angeles (CHLA). His strong leadership record also includes senior management roles at the Mayo Clinic and the Samaritan Physicians Center.

Job Titles:

• Immediate past Chair
• Chief Executive of CHLA
• Health Care Leader

Paul S. Viviano is a health care leader who has directed nonprofit and for-profit health care organizations that deliver excellence in clinical care, research and diagnostics for three decades. Viviano joined Children's Hospital Los Angeles as president and chief executive officer in 2015 and serves as a member of the institution's Board of Trustees. Previous to serving as chief executive of CHLA, Viviano led the UC San Diego Health System, an institution noted for its leadership in medical research and patient care. He has also served as the chief executive officer of USC University Hospital and USC/Norris Cancer Hospital and held various chief executive roles within the St. Joseph Health System, ultimately serving as the president and chief operating officer for the system. He served as chief of Alliance HealthCare Services, the nation's largest provider of outpatient diagnostic imaging services for thirteen years. Viviano serves on the boards of several organizations, including the California Hospital Association, Loyola Marymount University and Alliance HealthCare Services.

Job Titles:

• Senior Vice President and Administrator of Loma Linda University Children 's Hospital
• Senior Vice President, Administrator, Loma Linda University Children 's Hospital

Peter Baker is the Senior Vice President and Administrator of Loma Linda University Children's Hospital. Children's Hospital is the only dedicated pediatric hospital in the vast geographic region of San Bernardino, Riverside, Inyo, and Mono counties and treats more than 100,000 children each year. Peter Baker has more than 15 years of experience in the healthcare field, specifically in business development, strategy and operations. He served Loma Linda University Health for more than seven years before accepting his position at Children's Hospital, previously in the role of Senior Vice President and Administrator of Loma Linda University Medical Center - Murrieta since 2016. Peter Baker holds a Doctor of Law degree and Master of Business Administration degree from Golden Gate University. He currently serves as a board member of the California Children's Hospital Association and serves on boards overseeing Adventist Health International hospitals in Ghana and Nigeria. He resides in Redlands and enjoys golf, travel, snow skiing, and spending time with his wife and family.

Job Titles:

• CEO
• President

Job Titles:

• Executive Assistant
• Office Manager

Ms. Wilder provides office management to the association and executive level support to the CEO. Prior to joining CCHA, Ms. Wilder spent over fifteen years working with non-profit organizations and community-based entities that are engaged in advocacy and societal change. For nearly ten years she has managed office operations and participated in executive support activity in the area of government relations and public policy. She holds a bachelor's degree in communications with a public relations concentration and a minor in sociology. Her love of community is the driving force behind her commitment to this line of work.

Job Titles:

• President & CEO, Valley Children 's Hospital

Todd Suntrapak has served Valley Children's Hospital in many leadership and operational positions over the past twenty years, currently as the President and Chief Executive Officer. Prior to joining the Valley Children's team in 1995, Todd worked for two national health care companies in the areas of contracting, market analysis and business development. Mr. Suntrapak holds a master's degree in Health Care Management and is heavily engaged in continuing education programs. This includes involvement with The Craig School of Business' entrepreneurship program at California State University, Fresno. As a mentor in this program Todd has been part of a hands-on effort to work personally with students, sharing experience and helping ensure that the knowledge of each generation of health care leaders is passed on to the next. Todd served on the Regents Advisory Council of the California Association of Health Care Leaders, is past Sierra Pacific President of the American College of Healthcare Executives and supports and serves on the boards of many other organizations. His passions within the realm of providing care, especially his work at Children's, focuses heavily on the roll of patient safety and quality performance.

Job Titles:

• Chief Executive for MemorialCare Miller Children's & Women 's Hospital
• Chief Executive, MemorialCare Miller Children's & Women 's Hospital Long Beach, Senior Vice President, Pediatrics MemorialCare

Yair Katz is the chief executive for MemorialCare Miller Children's & Women's Hospital Long Beach, and senior vice president of pediatrics for MemorialCare. He is leading the development and execution of the vision of Miller Children's & Women's and related medical center services, as well as pediatrics services within the health system. He engages with key stakeholders regarding strategy, emerging health care trends, philanthropy, marketing, facility planning, educational partnerships, and legislative matters. He has oversight of all management and professional agreements for both clinical and non-shared services between Miller Children's & Women's and outside organizations. For the past seven years, Yair has led the financial operations at MemorialCare's Long Beach Medical Center and Miller Children's & Women's, as the chief financial officer. Prior to that Katz brings experience from executive positions with the University of Southern California (USC) and a list of large and iconic health organizations during his leadership and tenure with PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC). Previously, Katz was Assistant Vice President and Associate University Controller of USC. In this role, he was responsible for reviewing operational and financial performance of three USC hospitals. A Long Beach resident, Yair holds a Bachelor's degree in accounting from Touro University.