MADISON — After seven years leading SSM Health’s operations in Wisconsin, Damond Boatwright will be leaving the organization to become CEO of Illinois-based Hospital Sisters Health System (HSHS).
Boatwright will lead the system’s nearly 2,300 physician partners and more than 13,000 associate staff in Illinois and Wisconsin.
Boatwright joined SSM Health in 2014 as the Wisconsin Regional President of Hospital Operations.In 2017, he was promoted to regional president overseeing all operations within the Wisconsin region, including SSM Health’s integrated care delivery network made up of seven hospitals, 85-plus clinics, 10 post-acute locations, and home health services.
“While I am excited about this new chapter, this decision was not easy,” said Boatwright. “Wisconsin has become my home and SSM Health has become my family. I am incredibly proud of the work the organization has done. SSM Health has a strong leadership team in place and I cannot wait to see what the future holds for the extraordinary people I’ve been blessed to know and serve these past seven years. I will be eternally grateful for my time at SSM Health and the life-long relationships made through my work here.”
Under Boatwright’s leadership, SSM Health integrated with the Congregation of the Sisters of St. Agnes, which added health care services from Agnesian HealthCare and Monroe Clinic into the SSM Health family.
He supported and championed economic growth initiatives like SSM Health Dean Medical Group’s South Madison Campus project, a $75 million investment in the heart of Madison, as well as the development of a new, $40 million standalone primary and specialty care clinic in Beaver Dam.
In 2020, Boatwright offered thoughtful and compassionate leadership to the SSM Health team as it navigated the COVID-19 pandemic.
Over the past seven years, Boatwright has also served as a collaborative community leader through his service on the Wisconsin Health Association Board, as a member of the Madison Area Chamber of Commerce, past board president of the American Heart Association’s Wisconsin chapter, a member of the bi-partisan Speaker’s Task Force on Racial Disparities, and various other board memberships.
Boatwright’s last day with SSM Health will be on May 15.
A national search for a permanent regional president is underway.