Leadership Team
WakeMed and its leadership is committed to being the best in the health care business. We continually offer new and improved medical services, build state-of-the-art, convenient facilities for our customers and hire the best and the brightest people to work in our organization — all in the name of providing a quality experience for the people we serve.
WakeMed Board of Directors
As a private, not-for-profit organization, WakeMed Health & Hospitals is governed by a 14-member volunteer Board of Directors who are representative of the communities we serve. All inquiries for the Board should be directed to Dionne Whitaker, manager, Board Operations, at 919-350-6565 or dwhitaker@wakemed.org.
Executive Staff
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Donald R. Gintzig President & CEO |
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Seth Brody, MD, MPH Executive Vice President & Chief Physician Executive |
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Thomas Gough, MHA Executive Vice President, Chief Operating Officer |
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Stephanie Sessoms, MHA, CPA Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer |
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Rebecca E. Andrews, MSCL Senior Vice President & Administrator, Raleigh Campus |
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Valerie Barlow, PharmD, MBA Senior Vice President & Administrator, WakeMed North Hospital |
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Cindy A. Boily, MSN, RN Senior Vice President & Chief Nursing Officer |
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Karen Chilton, MD Senior Vice President & Chief Quality Officer |
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Jeronica Goodwin, DHA Senior Vice President, Human Resources & Chief People Officer |
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Tom Hughes, MHA Senior Vice President & Administrator, WakeMed Cary Hospital |
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Carolyn Knaup, MHA, RN Senior Vice President, Strategic Ventures & Ambulatory Operations |
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Marina Cecchini, MPA Senior Vice President, Mental Health & Well-Being |
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Thomas G. Cavender, PE Vice President, Facilities & Construction |
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Christine Craig Vice President, Government Affairs |
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Waqiah Ellis, PhD, RN, NE-BC, BCC Vice President, Nursing, Raleigh Campus |
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Gayla Harvey Vice President, Payor Strategy |
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Debra Z. Laughery, MBA Vice President, Marketing & Communications |
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Brian Lynde, JD Vice President & Chief Legal Officer |
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Peter Marks, PhD Vice President & Chief Information Officer |
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Jeff Neisen, MBA Vice President, Revenue Cycle |
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David Nussman Interim Vice President & Chief Compliance and Privacy Officer |
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John Perry, MD Vice President, Medical Education |
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Rick Shrum, MBA, MHA Vice President & Chief Strategy Officer |
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Jodi Strong Vice President, WakeMed Physician Practices Operations |
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Henry (Hank) Woods, IV Vice President, WakeMed Foundation |
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Neal Chawla, MD Chief Medical Information Officer |
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Karen Bash, MD Chief Medical Officer, North Hospital |
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Charles Harr, MD, MBA Chief Medical Officer, Raleigh Campus |
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Doug Trocinski, MD Chief Medical Officer, Cary Hospital |
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Micah Krempasky, MD Chief Medical Officer, Mental Health & Well-Being Hospitals |
Medical Staff
Our physicians represent nearly every medical and surgical specialty, with 90+% being either Board certified or Board eligible. Our physicians hold key leadership positions throughout the organization — current presidents of our Medical Staffs are as follows:
- Raleigh Campus: Darlene Esper, MD – (WakeMed OB-GYN)
- Cary Hospital: David Leader, DO – President (WEPPA)