Leadership

Sister Mary Frances Loftin
Chairman, Board of Directors

A Daughter of Charity since 1952, Sister Mary Frances has served in many capacities including registered nurse, health care executive, health care governance and chancellor of a Catholic Diocese. She was also a member of the Daughters of Charity East Central Provincial Council for six years. She has served in health care on local, regional and national levels.

Some high points in her career include: Chancellor of the Diocese of Birmingham in Alabama, President and Chief Executive Officer, and member of the Board of Directors of the Daughters of Charity National Health System which has now become Ascension Health. Prior to that time, she served as President and Chief Executive Officer of several organizations including Saint Thomas Hospital in Nashville, Tennessee and St. Vincent’s Hospital in Birmingham, Alabama. She has worked as a staff nurse, a head nurse, vice-president, chief executive officer and more recently in full time governance.

Sister Mary Frances has served in hospitals from Mobile and Birmingham, Alabama to New Orleans, Louisiana, Austin and Dallas, Texas, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Nashville, Tennessee and Chicago, Illinois. She has served on numerous governing boards in health care and foundations as well as bank and insurance boards.

Presently, she chairs the Board of Directors of Saint Thomas Health Services in Nashville, Tennessee, and serves as a board member for St. Vincent Health System in Birmingham, Alabama, the Saint Thomas Health Services Fund Board and the Catholic Charities Board in Nashville.

Honors and awards include selection as one of the Outstanding Women in Birmingham and the National Women Executives “Executive of the Year’ in Nashville. More recently, Sister Mary Frances was inducted into the Seton Society of Saint Thomas Health Services.

Sister attended Marquette University in Milwaukee where she received a Bachelor in Nursing Degree and attended The George Washington University in Washington, D.C. obtaining a Masters in Business Administration with a major in health care administration. Prior to this, she graduated from Walton High School in DeFuniak Springs, Florida and received a Diploma in Nursing from Providence School of Nursing in Mobile.

She has traveled throughout the United States, Canada, several European countries including Paris, the Grand Caymans, British West Indies, Bermuda, Israel and Jordan.

Patrick J. Madden
Chief Executive Officer
Saint Thomas Health Services

Patrick J. Madden joins Saint Thomas Health Services as its Chief Executive Officer. Having served as a board member for the system between 1999 and 2004, Mr. Madden knows STHS and the Nashville community well.

"I am pleased about returning to Nashville and reconnecting with my friends and colleagues in the area," said Madden. "I am familiar with the unique qualities and strengths of the Saint Thomas Health Services, and I am fully committed to its continued growth and success." Mr. Madden also serves as the President and Chief Executive Officer of Sacred Heart Health System, Pensacola, Fla. and is the Gulf Coast/North Florida Ministry Market Leader for Ascension Health. Mr. Madden has more than 35 years of experience in healthcare administration. Prior to joining Sacred Heart in 1995, he served as the President and Chief Executive Officer of St. Mary's Hospital in Rochester, N.Y. for eight years, and as the President and Chief Executive Officer of Park Ridge Health Services Corporation, also in Rochester. Mr. Madden also worked on Wall Street and for the oil industry. He earned a master's degree in business administration from Fordham University in New York and has two undergraduate degrees from City College of New York. He is a Fellow in the American College of Healthcare Executives.

Wes Littrell
Chief Strategy Officer and President
Saint Thomas Health Services Affiliates

Wes is a long-time associate of Saint Thomas Hospital and Health Services. He joined Saint Thomas Hospital as Director of Patient Business Services in 1986 and became Assistant Vice President of Patient Business Services in 1990. Over the years, Wes served in executive roles overseeing surgical services, the regional physician network and, in 2001, was named Senior Vice President and Chief Strategic/Outreach Officer for Saint Thomas Hospital.

With the acquisition of Baptist Health Services and the consequent creation of Saint Thomas Health Services, Wes was named Senior Vice President for the newly formed system and, later, Executive Vice President and Chief Operations Officer for Baptist Hospital. Wes, well-regarded for both his operational expertise and his relationship-building skills, was named Chief Operating Officer of Saint Thomas Health Services in 2007 and in 2008 was named to his current role.

Over the past 20 plus years, Wes has served in executive roles overseeing surgical services, strategic planning, operational, financial, ancillary, physician practice and clinical areas. During his 30 years in the healthcare field, he has held executive positions in for-profit, not-for-profit, faith-based and academic health systems.

Wes received his degree in Business Administration and Accounting from the University of North Alabama and did his post-graduate work in Health Services Administration at the University of Alabama in Birmingham. He received certification in patient accounting from the Healthcare Financial Management Association in 1985 and received his designation as Fellow from the American College of Healthcare Executives in 2006. Wes serves on the THA Board of Directors, the CABLE Advisory Board and numerous other joint venture boards. He and his wife, Sharon, live in Nashville.

Saint Thomas Health Services Affiliates is comprised of the many affiliated organizations including joint ventures, limited liability companies and others that are a vital part of Saint Thomas Health Services strategic and financial future.

Alan Strauss
Chief Financial Officer
Saint Thomas Health Services

Alan was named Chief Financial Officer of STHS in May 2006 and brings nearly 30 years of healthcare finance experience to the role, specializing in affecting rapid advances in multi-facility organizations. Fourteen years of Alan's career were spent at Saint John's Hospital and Health Center in Santa Monica, California. At Saint John's, Strauss served as Chief Financial Officer/Operations Leader and as the CEO of Vinserra, a for-profit affiliate of the Health Center. Saint John's is sponsored by the Sisters of Charity of Leavenworth.

Bernie Sherry
President and Chief Executive Officer
Baptist Hospital

Bernie Sherry joined Baptist Hospital as president and CEO in June 2003. He is responsible for leading the largest not-for-profit community hospital in Middle Tennessee with 683 licensed beds and nearly 2,000 associates. Prior to joining Baptist Hospital and Saint Thomas Health Services, Sherry worked at the Greenville University Hospital System, a 1,100 bed multi-hospital system, in Greenville, S.C.

He earned his bachelor's degree from Gannon University in Erie, PA, and his master's degree in health administration from the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston, S.C. He is a diplomat of the American College of Health Care Executives and a participant in Ascension Health's Leadership Formation for Healthcare Ministry, a two-year program focusing on ministry within a healthcare setting. Sherry is active in the Nashville community and serves on several corporate boards. Sherry and his wife, Lori, have three children and live in Franklin, Tenn.

Gordon B. Ferguson, FACHE
President and Chief Executive Officer
Middle Tennessee Medical Center
Gordon B. Ferguson has served as president and chief executive officer since 2006. Ferguson has more than 20 years of healthcare experience. He began his career as director of planning at Baptist Medical Center Princeton in Birmingham, Ala. In 1998, Ferguson joined MTMC as senior vice president of support services and subsequently served as senior vice president of operations. In 2004, he was named chief operating officer. He has overseen the construction of a $26 million outpatient service facility, facilitated the establishment of joint ventures and completed a master facility plan as part of the hospital's overall strategic plan. Currently, he oversees a $267 million project for MTMC's replacement facility.

Ferguson received a bachelor's degree in business administration with honors from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. He earned a master's degree in hospital and health administration from the University of Alabama, Birmingham. In 2007, Ferguson became a Fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives, an international professional society of more than 30,000 healthcare executives who lead hospitals, healthcare systems and other healthcare organizations. Ferguson serves on the board of directors for United Way of Rutherford County; he serves on the Business Education Partnership board of directors and is a member of noon Rotary in Murfreesboro. He and his wife, Cindy, live in Murfreesboro with their two sons, Robbie and Andy.

Les A. Donahue
President and Chief Executive Officer
Saint Thomas Hospital

Les A. Donahue, MBA, FACHE, began his duties as President and Chief Executive Officer of Saint Thomas Hospital on May 1, 2006.

Previously, Donahue served as Chief Executive Officer for Sentara Virginia Beach General Hospital in Virginia Beach, Virginia. He also served concurrently as Corporate Vice President for Sentara Healthcare, headquartered in Norfolk, Virginia.

Donahue brings a breadth of healthcare leadership experience to Saint Thomas Hospital. Much like Saint Thomas Hospital, Sentara Virginia Beach General Hospital is an acute and tertiary care facility specializing in cardiology and cardiac surgery. Leading that organization since 2003, Donahue led strategic planning initiatives that resulted in increased financial viability and innovative patient care models for the facility, as well as significant capital improvement efforts.

Prior to his leadership role at the Virginia Beach Hospital, Donahue was President and CEO of Sentara Williamsburg Community Hospital in Williamsburg, where he led a campaign for the construction of a new hospital and implemented innovations that led to superior patient satisfaction results. Prior to joining the Sentara Healthcare System in 1995, Donahue held CEO positions with the Saint Francis Healthcare System in Charleston, West Virginia, and The McDowell Hospital in Marion, North Carolina. Donahue began his career in Nashville in both CFO and Administrator roles with Hospital Corporation of America (HCA) facilities.

Donahue holds a Bachelor of Science degree and Master of Business Administration degree from Appalachian State University in Boone, North Carolina. He completed a post-graduate executive program in healthcare administration at Duke University in 1980.