FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
10/13/06
Contact:
Colleen O’Toole
513 531-0200
HEALTH COUNCIL NAMES SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT
Nancy M. Strassel has been promoted to Senior Vice President of the Greater Cincinnati Health Council, effective immediately. Strassel had served as a Health Council vice president since 1993, overseeing the organization’s internal and external communications and data services programs. She joined the Council in 1988 as director of Communications. In addition, since 1995 she has served as health assessment/special projects Director for the Health Improvement Collaborative of Greater Cincinnati, a Health Council subsidiary that works to improve the health status of the community.
In this newly created position, Strassel will lead the Council’s growing focus on quality and patient safety, provide support to the President for the organization’s advocacy work in the community, and continue to provide strategic direction and oversight for the Council’s communications and data services functions.
“I am pleased to serve the Council’s members and the Greater Cincinnati community in this new role as we work together on efforts to improve the delivery of health care services,” Strassel said.
“Nancy has shown outstanding leadership in many initiatives that have helped hospitals to collect and interpret data on utilization of health services and quality performance. All of these efforts assist us all in providing better patient care,” said Tom Urban, CEO of Mercy Health Partners and current GCHC board chair. “In addition, she has been a key spokesperson in communicating these data trends to the community,” he said. “ We look forward to working with her in this expanded role.”
Strassel has led a number of efforts with area hospitals during her service at the Council. Most recently, these have included implementation of the Secret Safe Place program for abandoned infants, coordination of widespread distribution of a medication wallet card that enables patients to track their current prescriptions, and helping to implement tobacco-free campuses across 20 area hospitals effective January 1, 2007. At the Health Improvement Collaborative, she provided leadership to implement the community’s first comprehensive study of the area’s health status, which began in 1996 and is conducted every three years.
“With the rapidly changing health care environment we’re in, it’s important for our members and our region to know that there’s a real depth of strong leadership at the Health Council,” said Colleen O’Toole, PhD, president of the Health Council. “I’m delighted that Nancy’s expertise will be extended to the increasingly complex and important area of public reporting of quality information.”
Prior to joining the Council, Strassel served as a senior communications staff at the Academy of Medicine of Cincinnati, and prior to that, as an educator. She holds a bachelor of Science degree in Education from the University of Cincinnati and a master’s degree in Education from Xavier University with a concentration in Communications.
She currently serves on the boards of Working In Neighborhoods and the Literacy Network of Greater Cincinnati. Strassel lives in Hyde Park with her husband, Gary. She has three daughters.