HRSA Administrator Elizabeth M. Duke has announced several changes in the agency’s leadership team. Chief among them is a new associate administrator for Primary Health Care, a new acting associate administrator at Healthcare Systems, and new directors of the Office of International Health and Office of Minority Health.
 
“The changes will further HRSA’s mission of expanding access to quality health care for all Americans and help us implement HRSA’s new Strategic Plan for Fiscal Years 2005-2010,” Administrator Duke said.
 
The HRSA Strategic Plan has seven goals:
·        Improve Access to Health Care
·        Improve Health Outcomes
·        Improve the Quality of Health Care
·        Eliminate Health Disparities
·        Improve the Public Health and Health Care Systems
·        Enhance the Ability of the Health Care System to Respond to Public Health Emergencies; and
·        Achieve Excellence in Management Practices.
 
“We will place a special emphasis on the completion of three of the goals: improving healthcare quality, eliminating health disparities, and improving the way we manage our programs,” Dr. Duke added.
 
The personnel changes, which became effective Feb. 21, are as follows:
·        At Primary Health Care, Michelle Snyder, formerly associate administrator of Healthcare Systems, will be the new associate administrator.  Don Weaver, former director of the National Health Service Corps (NHSC), will be Primary Health Care’s new deputy associate administrator; Neil Sampson will serve as chief of staff; and Amy Taylor will be acting director of the Division of Clinical Quality.
·        At Healthcare Systems, Joyce Somsak will replace Snyder as acting associate administrator.   Rick Smith will be acting deputy associate administrator.
·        At Health Professions, David Rutstein will leave his post as deputy associate administrator to head the Office of International Health Affairs.   June Horner, who formerly headed the Office of Minority Health, will be Health Professions’ new deputy associate administrator.   Jennifer Burke will serve as acting director of the NHSC.
 
Additionally:
·        Bill Robinson will become director for the Office of Minority Health.  That office will be renamed the Office of Minority Health and Health Disparities to reflect its new responsibility to manage the cross-cutting health disparities goal in the HRSA Strategic Plan for Fiscal Years 2005-2010.  Robinson will remain HRSA's chief medical officer.
·        Sam Shekar, former associate administrator for Primary Health Care, will become director of the Center for Quality to manage the cross-cutting quality improvement goal in the strategic plan.  Suzanne Feetham, formerly at Primary Health Care, will join him at the center.
·        Caroline Lewis, also formerly of Primary Health Care, will become deputy associate administrator for the Office of Administration and Financial Management.