One-on-One with Dale Maxwell
with Dale Maxwell
Getting better outcomes for patients, lowering the costs of care and anticipating changes in the uncertain and fastmoving health-care environment top Presbyterian Healthcare Services’ list of goals under its new CEO and president.
Dale Maxwell, a veteran administrator at Presbyterian, replaced longtime top exec Jim Hinton, officially taking the reins of the state’s largest health-care provider in early February after briefly leading the organization in an interim capacity.
Maxwell, who has served in various roles at Presbyterian since 2000, said Hinton, a mentor both personally and professionally, did “an incredible job of positioning us for the future.” The two men are still in close contact since Hinton moved to Texas to be CEO of the Baylor Scott & White health-care system CEO in Dallas. “Jim’s doing fantastic,” said Maxwell.
Maxwell, who had been acting as interim CEO since the beginning of the year, received unanimous approval from the Presbyterian board, chairwoman Kathie Winograd said.
“We are confident he will build upon our strengths as we continue providing quality health-care services for our community,” Winograd said. She said Maxwell, who has made the rounds in all of the system’s major business divisions, also will benefit from Presbyterian’s “deep bench” in both the executive suite and on the care delivery side.
They’ll certainly need to tap into this expertise as the year unfolds.
Dealing with the uncertainties of the pending repeal and/or
replacement of the Affordable Care Act will be a critical area of concern for the organization. Many of its health plan members are Medicare and Medicaid recipients. Expansion of Medicaid eligibility meant that Presbyterian had a chance to sign up many of its uninsured patients and get some reimbursement for their care.
Founded in 2008, Presbyterian has 12,000 employees, eight hospitals across the state, a new medical center on the way in Santa Fe and a medical group with more than 800 providers. Presbyterian also operates a for-profit health plan with 460,000 members.
Maxwell, who grew up in Silver City, was probably destined for a health-care career. His father was a hospital administrator, and his mother worked as a nurse. Continuing in the family tradition is Maxwell’s 21-yearold daughter, who is studying to be a physical therapist in San Diego.
Maxwell had a varied career before entering the health-care industry.
Fresh out of New Mexico State University, he went to work for accounting company Arthur Andersen in Albuquerque, assigned to various clients, including the Albuquerque Publishing Co., which later hired him. Over the years, he took on progressively responsible positions in the finance profession, moving from the publishing business into health care for Lovelace Health System when it was owned by Cigna Health Care.
Like other people in demanding jobs, Maxwell starts his work days early, driving down from Santa Fe where he’s lived the past six years. When the father of two daughters finds time, he loves to push himself athletically, especially on his mountain bike.
Presbyterian’s president will need all the stamina earned on the bike for his current work challenge.
Q: How does the uncertainty over the future of health care affect what you do right now?
A: From a strategic standpoint, having the ACA in place is something we can plan around. The ACA has been good for New Mexico. It helped strengthen the Medicaid program and avoided payment cuts to health systems across the state, especially rural ones. With 260,000 additional people covered, it brought the state’s uninsured rate down from 22 percent to 11 percent. Hospital systems like Presbyterian saw big reductions on the uncompensated care side.
The consequences of contracting oil and gas revenues, which has been substantial, is also concerning. It’ll be hard for insurers to turn to the state, with all its budget woes, for additional funding until we turn a corner in the economy and see more job creation.
Q: Tell me about your growing-up years.
A: I was born in Bisbee, Ariz., and moved to Silver City when I was in the fourth grade. It was a great little community, and we knew almost everyone in town. That was good in one sense and bad in another. You had a lot of eyes watching you, so any kind of misbehavior was sure to get back to your parents.
Q: Tell me about your family.
A: My dad, John Maxwell, was a finance guy as well and worked as an administrator for the hospital in Silver City. My mom, Bonnie, was a nurse and also worked at the hospital. I could sense that they had a passion for health care, and there was more meaning to their work than just earning a paycheck.
As a child growing up, I would leave school, walk across the street and spend time with my dad in his office. I remember stuffing patient bills in envelopes, which was probably good training for my future career. I have a sister, Debbie, who lives in Alaska and is the manager of a dental office. My brother, John, works in construction and still lives in Silver City.
Q: Who were your mentors?
A: One who sticks in my mind is David Cordani, the current CEO of Cigna Health Care. When I worked as a field financial officer for Lovelace, he taught me about having a strategic mind-set: being focused on key goals and working as a true team to achieve it. Another is Jim Hinton, who I worked with for 16 years. Jim taught me to do the right thing. For example, he said that whenever you are in doubt, always ask a simple question: What is the right thing for the patients that we serve? If we do that and live by that, we are not going to go wrong. The best bosses have not only given me additional challenges, but they’ve also allowed me to make mistakes in a non-punishing or nonthreatening way.
Q: A perfect way to spend the day?
A: It would be spent with my wife, Paige. I’d go on a hike with her and our dog, then cook a dinner at home and watch a movie.
Q: Tell me about your wife and kids.
A: My wife is a residential real-estate broker for Sotheby’s International in Santa Fe. I met Paige six years ago and moved up there. Three years ago, we were married. We are in the process of moving back to Albuquerque. My daughter, Emily, will graduate in May with a degree in kinesiology. She has been accepted into a doctorate program in physical therapy. My stepdaughter, Phoebe, is 14. As she is going through these various stages of life, I can calm Paige down and share my own experiences of raising a teenager. The advice is usually the same: “She’ll grow out of it!”
Q: What’s your daily commute like?
A: It’s about 45 minutes. I listen to books on tape. … take Italian lessons — on tape, of course.
Q: What advice would you give to new CEOs like yourself?
A: Walk in with your eyes wide open, be humble and listen to your customers and employees.
Q: How would you describe yourself in three words?
A: Caring. Determined. A learner.