Hartford HealthCare today announced two leadership changes to its eastern region, which includes Backus Hospital in Norwich and Windham Hospital in Willimantic. Its president has been promoted to a system-wide role.
David Whitehead, president of the HHC East Region, will become chief strategy and transformation officer for Hartford HealthCare. Bimal Patel, HHC’s vice president for operational integration, will become president of the East Region. Both retain their roles as senior vice presidents of the system.
Whitehead replaces James Blazar, who has accepted a leadership position at Hackensack University Medical Center in New Jersey.
Whitehead has led Backus Hospital since 2009, and Windham Hospital since 2012. At Windham Hospital, Whitehead created a care model to transform Windham Hospital. He will continue to be involved and responsible for the implementation of that model in his new role.
Patel, a trained pharmacist, joined HHC in 2009 as vice president for support services at Hartford Hospital. He became a regional vice president for operations in 2013 and assumed a broader system role as senior vice president for operational integration a little more than a year ago.
