Covenant Health is pleased to announce Chris Dougherty as the chief executive officer (CEO) of Covenant Children’s Hospital (CCH) and Lakeside campus. The selection of Dougherty as CEO is part of Covenant Health System’s strategic plan to significantly expand pediatric services to better serve families in the region.
“Based on a needs assessment of the 62 counties we serve, we recognized the importance of our role as the only separately licensed children’s hospital in the region and one of only seven in the entire state of Texas. Our goal was to identify a seasoned children’s hospital leader who will continue to guide us in our journey in becoming one of the premier children’s hospitals in the nation,” Troy Thibodeaux, chief operating officer (COO) for Covenant Health, said. “We feel blessed to have found someone like Chris who shares our passion for providing family-centered care to the children of this region.”
As CEO of CCH, Dougherty will oversee the planning, administration, coordination and evaluation of operations for CCH and Lakeside campus. Currently, CCH provides the largest team of pediatric specialists in the region and offers a comprehensive range of services that include a dedicated pediatric emergency department and trauma center, Level IIIC newborn intensive care unit and the nationally recognized Isom Heart Center for Children.
“With more than 20 years of experience in the health care industry, Chris has the knowledge and insight to lead the CCH team in recruiting pediatric specialists and providing a wider range of services to care for our youngest patients,” Richard Parks, president and CEO of Covenant Health, said. “More importantly, we recognized Chris as a man of deep faith and integrity that fits well with our commitment as a faith-based hospital.”
After conducting a nationwide candidate search, a selection committee comprised of CCH staff, physicians and Covenant leadership chose Dougherty.
“The physicians at CCH are thrilled because we were able to hand-pick a leader who shares our vision for the future and can partner with us to provide the best care to the children of this region,” Todd Brodbeck, M.D., local pediatrician and chief of staff at CCH, said. “Chris stood out from the beginning of the search and I have no doubt his expertise will help us as we navigate the ever-changing health care landscape.”
Dougherty will officially begin his work at Covenant Children’s Hospital in January.
“The first thing I want to do is really get to know the people associated with CCH and begin building strong relationships. This includes the medical staff, the referring community, the patients and families we are honored to serve and the wonderful staff that works at Covenant,” Dougherty said. “More importantly, I want to listen and hear how they think we can make this the best children’s hospital it can possibly be.”
Dougherty comes to Lubbock from JPS Health Network in Fort Worth where he served as the senior vice president of community health. Prior to working for JPS, Dougherty served in senior leadership roles for Children’s Medical Center in Dallas and the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia.
Dougherty received his bachelor’s degree in politics from Allentown College of Saint Francis de Sales in Center Valley, Penn. and a master’s degree in health and medical services administration from Widener University in Place Chester, Penn.
Dougherty is married to Wendy, and they have two children, Shane and Courtney.
Covenant Health
Covenant Health is the largest health care institution in the region with 1,033 licensed beds, more than 4,500 employees and a medical staff of more than 600 physicians at its cornerstone facilities.
Covenant is a member of St. Joseph Health based in Orange, Calif. and serves a 62-county area spanning West Texas and eastern New Mexico, with a population in excess of 1.2 million. Cornerstone hospitals are Covenant Medical Center, Covenant Women’s and Children’s and Covenant Specialty Hospital, Covenant Hospital Levelland and Covenant Hospital Plainview.