TGH North, a division of Tampa General Hospital, announced its new TGH Brooksville and TGH Spring Hill board of managers, which will serve as a guide for leadership and oversee operations. The board convened Wednesday in Brooksville for its inaugural meeting.
“At TGH North, families in the region can continue to rely on their local providers while gaining access to all the research, technology, innovation and world-class care that Tampa General Hospital has to offer,” said John Couris, chair of the board at TGH North and president and CEO of Tampa General Hospital. “The new board brings the full complement of expertise to the table, including health care specialists and community leaders, to ensure that we’re on target to meet the needs of this community, while honoring its history and traditions.”
As a first order of business, Couris was elected to serve as chair. Since joining Tampa General as president and CEO in 2017, Couris has championed innovation, promoted operational excellence, and fostered a culture where teams are valued, all of which contribute to Tampa General becoming one of the nation’s leading academic health systems.
“At TGH North, we’re working to expand access to world-class care in Citrus and Hernando Counties, while honoring and maintaining community traditions,” said Steve Short, executive vice president at Tampa General and president of TGH North. “With the establishment of a new board at TGH North, we’re working to ensure that our facilities, operations and team members are guided by experienced leaders who know and love the families of this community and understand the full range of health care needs of this region.”
The board of managers includes:
Lisa Allen-Khalil, M.D., specializes in internal medicine and has provided primary care service in Hernando County since 1995. Dr. Allen-Khalil earned her medical degree from the University of Nebraska College of Medicine in Omaha and completed her residency at the University of South Florida in Internal Medicine.
Roderick Bennett, M.D., brings more than 30 years of experience in the field of Emergency Medicine. Currently, he leads four Emergency Departments at TGH North and serves as medical director for the Hernando and Citrus counties Fire and Rescue teams. Dr. Bennett completed his undergraduate degree at Harvard University and received his medical degree at the Emory University School of Medicine. He completed his residency at Charity Hospital in New Orleans, where he served as Chief Resident. Dr. Bennett also holds a master’s in business administration from Crummer Graduate School of Business at Rollins College, in Winter Park.
M. Rodwan Hiba, M.D., has been a member of the medical staff at TGH Brooksville and TGH Spring Hill since 1999. He has represented the medical staff in various leadership roles, including Chief of Staff, Secretary and Treasurer. As a gastroenterologist, Dr. Hiba is one of only two physicians in the county who perform Endoscopic Ultrasound. He earned his Doctor of Medicine at Damascus University, completed an internship at Al Mujtahid Hospital (also known as Damascus Hospital) and residency in internal medicine at Wayne State University School of Medicine, Detroit, followed by a fellowship in gastroenterology at the University of Kansas School of Medicine, Kansas City.
Frank Morsani is the former chair and owner of Automotive Investments, LLC, which owns and operates several automobile dealerships. He currently serves as Chairman of the University of South Florida Investment Committee, a member of the Executive Committee of the Straz Center for the Performing Arts Center, and a member of the Council on Foreign Relations. He and his wife Carol are celebrated philanthropists for their generosity to the communities in which they live and serve.
The board also features representatives of the Florida Health Sciences Center, under which Tampa General Hospital operates. The following TGH leadership will serve on the TGH North board:
Phil Dingle is the immediate past chair of the board of directors at Florida Health Sciences Center. He is the managing partner of HealthEdge, where he is responsible for originating deals, overseeing due diligence, financing and transaction structuring, document negotiation, portfolio company management, fundraising and investor relations, and management of the firm. Before co-founding the firm, Phil served as CEO and Chairman of publicly-traded PlanVista Corporation (formerly HealthPlan Services Corporation/NYSE) until its sale in 2004.
John Touchton is a former chair of the board of directors at Florida Health Sciences Center. He is a third-generation partner and president of The Witt-Touchton Company, a family investment partnership in Tampa. Prior to his work at Witt-Touchton, he was a founding partner of Bayshore Capital Advisors and also worked for Lazard Frères & Co. in New York and for Bank of America Investment Banking in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Mark Runyon is the executive vice president and chief financial officer at Tampa General. In his role, Runyon leads and oversees all financial plans for Tampa General as the academic health system continues to develop its complete system of care for the community, region and state. He works collaboratively with the president and CEO, board, senior leaders and the entire TGH team to create a continuously improving atmosphere of safety, innovation, and financial stability and integrity while finding new ways to enhance financial performance and operations efficiency.
Adam Smith is the executive vice president and chief ambulatory care officer at Tampa General. Smith is responsible for inpatient and outpatient radiology, urgent care services, telehealth, the primary care physician network, the ambulatory surgery center and ambulatory buildings. He also executes the strategic plan related to the expansion of the ambulatory network and is responsible for the access strategy, the coordination of care and the patient experience in our ambulatory platform.
The board of managers at TGH North serves as the governing body for the operations in Hernando County. The board provides oversight of all strategic, financial, auditing and governance matters for the TGH North division of the not-for-profit academic health system.
Members of the board were nominated by hospital leadership and approved by the Florida Health Sciences Center Board. Leadership roles are elected by their peers. Leadership and board members are eligible to serve three three-year terms.
TGH North was formed on December 1, 2023, when Tampa General completed the acquisition of the Bravera Health network. TGH North encompasses three hospitals, one free-standing emergency department, two ambulatory surgical centers and 10 primary and specialty care clinics in Citrus and Hernando counties.
Tampa General Hospital is one of the nation’s leading academic health systems, where clinical care, teaching and research intersect to deliver the best possible outcomes, including cutting-edge technologies, resources and therapies, to the communities they serve.
ABOUT TAMPA GENERAL HOSPITAL
Tampa General Hospital, a 981-bed, not-for-profit, academic health system, is one of the largest hospitals in America and delivers world-class care as the region’s only center for Level l trauma and comprehensive burn care. Tampa General Hospital is the highest-ranked hospital in the market in U.S. News & World Report’s 2023-24 Best Hospitals, with six specialties ranking among the top 50 best hospital programs in the United States. Tampa General Hospital has been designated as a model of excellence by the 2022 Fortune/Merative 100 Top Hospitals list. The academic health system’s commitment to growing and developing its team members is recognized by two prestigious Forbes magazine rankings – in the top 100 nationally in the 2023 America’s Best Employers for Women and top 25 in Florida in the 2023 America’s Best Employers by State. Tampa General is the safety net hospital for the region, caring for everyone regardless of their ability to pay, and in fiscal year 2021, provided a net community benefit of approximately $240.3 million in the form of health care for underinsured patients, community education, and financial support to community health organizations in Tampa Bay. It is one of the nation’s busiest adult solid organ transplant centers and is the primary teaching hospital for the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine. With six medical helicopters, Tampa General Hospital transports critically injured or ill patients from 23 surrounding counties to receive the advanced care they need. Tampa General houses a nationally accredited comprehensive stroke center, and its 32-bed Neuroscience, Intensive Care Unit is the largest on the West Coast of Florida. It also is home to the Muma Children’s Hospital at TGH, the Jennifer Leigh Muma 82-bed neonatal intensive care unit, and a nationally accredited rehabilitation center. Tampa General Hospital’s footprint includes TGH North which is comprised of three hospitals and several outpatient locations in Citrus and Hernando counties, 17 Tampa General Medical Group Primary Care offices, TGH Family Care Center Kennedy, TGH Outpatient Center, TGH Virtual Health, and 21 TGH Imaging outpatient radiology centers throughout Hillsborough, Pasco, Pinellas and Palm Beach counties. Tampa Bay area residents also receive world-class care from the TGH Urgent Care powered by Fast Track network of clinics. To see a medical care professional live anytime, anywhere on a smartphone, tablet or computer, visit Virtual Health | Tampa General Hospital (tgh.org). As one of the largest hospitals in the country, Tampa General Hospital is the first in Florida to partner with GE Healthcare and open a clinical command center that provides real-time situational awareness to improve and better coordinate patient care at a lower cost. For more information, go to www.tgh.org.
