Recognizing accomplished leaders in healthcare

The annual awards presented by the American

recognize College of Healthcare Executives high-achieving industry leaders at various stages of their careers.

This year’s Gold Medal Awards, the ACHE’s highest honor, go to Gayle Capozzalo, executive VP of strategy and system development at Yale New Haven Health, and Rulon Stacey, a managing director at consultancy Navigant.

Capozzalo has held her role at Yale New Haven for more than 20 years and previously served in executive positions at other health systems. Stacey previously was CEO at Poudre Valley Health System in Colorado, an organization that earned the Baldrige National Quality Award during his tenure.

Nicholas Tejeda is this year’s recipient of the ACHE’s Robert S. Hudgens Memorial Award for Young Healthcare Executive of the Year, for distinguished leaders under age 40. Tejeda, 37, is CEO of the Hospitals of Providence Transmountain Campus in El Paso, Texas, the nation’s newest teaching hospital. All three executives are profiled in this special section. The recipients of this year’s ACHE Awards will be feted during the association’s annual Congress on Healthcare Leadership set for March 27-30 in Chicago. The theme for this year’s gathering is “Discussing Possibilities and Opportunities,” focused on how healthcare leaders now more than ever need to think outside the box in a rapidly changing industry. Among the featured speakers is Bernard Tyson, chairman and CEO of Kaiser Permanente. His presentation is titled “Transforming Healthcare in the 21st Century.”