Barbara O'Sullivan named hospital C.E.O.

Barbara O’Sullivan, who for the past three years has served as The Rockefeller University Hospital’s hospitalist – its chief medical doctor responsible for patient care – has been named C.E.O. of the hospital and will assume Emil C. Gotschlich’s duties as the facility’s administrative leader. Gotschlich announced earlier this year that he would transition to emeritus status effective July 1; he had been C.E.O. of the Hospital and vice president for medical sciences at the hospital since 1996.

O’Sullivan, who will also continue to serve as hospitalist, has training in internal medicine and critical care. Since joining Rockefeller’s hospital, she has led efforts to develop a quality assessment mechanism and improve the medication safety program, as well as update the hospital’s disaster plan and medical staff rules and regulations. She also played an active role in preparing the hospital for re-accreditation by the Joint Commission on the Accreditation of Health Organizations, a process that culminates in late October with a two-day survey of the hospital’s facilities.

“We are extremely grateful to Dr. Gotschlich for his outstanding leadership of The Rockefeller University Hospital and delighted that he will continue to serve as chair of the Institutional Review Board (IRB),” says Barry Coller, physician-in-chief and vice president for medical affairs. “We are very fortunate to have Dr. O’Sullivan as our new chief administrative officer of the hospital. Not only does she have superb medical and administrative experience, but she is universally respected and admired by the hospital staff.”

In her expanded role, O’Sullivan will assume responsibility for the day to day functioning of the hospital, including its finances, regulatory compliance and personnel. She will also work with Coller, James Krueger, medical director, and members of the Rockefeller University administration to set the overall vision and direction for the hospital.

“One of my goals is to evaluate and streamline the way in which we work with our clinical investigators when they launch new studies,” says O’Sullivan. “Setting up a study involves writing protocols, obtaining regulatory permissions, establishing mechanisms of patient care, collecting and managing data, and handling dozens of smaller details. I think we can be more organized and more efficient in how we help our investigators navigate these processes, so there are clear pathways and clear points of contact along the way.”

O’Sullivan, who is board certified in both internal medicine and critical care, received her M.P.H. from Tulane University and her M.D. from the Medical College of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia. Before coming to Rockefeller, she led a medical systems re-engineering project at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York, where she served as clinical assistant in the department of anesthesiology. She has also held clinical positions at Lenox Hill Hospital and Memorial Hospital for Cancer and Allied Diseases.