Cincinnati, OH – May 11, 2011 – Karen Bankston, PhD, Drake Center’s Senior Vice President, announced today that she will step down as that hospital’s chief executive at the end of June. Bankston has served the system for 21 years in a variety of leadership positions: she initially served as Assistant Administrator at University Hospital and later became the hospital’s Vice President of Patient Services and Chief Nursing Officer and Vice President of Operations. She then served as Vice President of External Affairs for the Health Alliance before being appointed the chief executive of Drake.

“Karen has been a catalyst for positive change and has provided steady leadership since she became Drake’s chief executive in 2005” said James A. Kingsbury, UC Health’s President & CEO. “She has worked tirelessly to strengthen the hospital and position it for long-term success. The UC Health board members and I are extremely grateful for her tremendous work and passion for Drake, its patients and mission.”

In announcing her departure, Bankston stated that her “goal was to ensure a new identity for Drake Center, something I have proudly accomplished. Our recent membership in UC Health begins an era of stability and strength for Drake, and we will benefit greatly by being linked to this powerful brand in our community. Likewise, our recent agreement with HealthSouth will allow Drake to focus on the long-term acute care services for which it is known, create an improved financial picture for our organization, and ensure more rehabilitative services for the community. I’m ready to move on to new and different challenges.”

“Dr. Bankston has guided Drake through a series of daunting challenges,” said Kevin Flynn, Chairman of the Board of Trustees for Drake Center.  “We have relied on her tremendous leadership and creative problem solving skills to move Drake forward and to preserve Drake as a community asset.  Karen, you will be missed,” Flynn added.

Bankston has held a number of high-level leadership positions in her 30-year healthcare career and is considered a community icon when it comes to healthcare issues and addressing the healthcare needs of the poor and underserved. She founded the Center for Closing the Health Gap and also serves on numerous local boards. She served nationally as an advisor to the American Hospital Association and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid.

With her departure, UC Health also announced the appointment of Terry Dunn, FACHE, Drake’s Chief Operating Officer (COO), as Executive Director of Drake Center. Dunn, a highly accomplished professional with more than 20 years experience as a healthcare manager and consultant, has served as a member of Drake’s senior management team since 2005 and was appointed COO in 2009. Dunn is board certified in healthcare quality (CPHQ) and a Six Sigma Black Belt; he also holds a Bachelor’s degree in engineering from Virginia Tech and a Master’s degree in business administration from the University of Kentucky.

About UC Health

UC Health includes University Hospital, ranked the best hospital in the region by US News and World Report; West Chester Hospital, Cincinnati’s newest hospital; Drake Center, Cincinnati’s premier provider of long term acute care; UC Physicians, Cincinnati’s largest specialty practice group with 650 board-certified clinicians and surgeons; the Lindner Center of HOPE, the region’s premier mental health center, and  the UC Cancer Institute, the UC Cardiovascular Institute, the UC Neuroscience Institute and the UC Diabetes and Endocrinology Institute. To learn more, visit UCHealth.com.

About Drake Center

Anthony Condia
UC Health
513.584.1134
anthony.condia@uchealth.com

“HealthSouth has an excellent reputation, values the work Drake is known for, and will continue to use the Drake name,” said Karen Bankston, Senior Vice President and Chief Executive Officer of Drake Center. “By operating with a rehab license, HealthSouth can accept even more patients than Drake can with an LTACH license. We believe this is an excellent opportunity to sustain and grow rehabilitation services on our site to serve the needs of our community,” she added.

The newly created rehabilitation hospital, HealthSouth Rehabilitation Hospital at Drake, will offer the latest in inpatient rehabilitative care including specialized rehabilitation programs and cutting-edge technology. The new hospital is expected to be fully operational in the fourth quarter of 2011. Existing patients under Drake’s care at that time who qualify for acute, inpatient rehabilitation will be transitioned to the new hospital.

The closing of the transaction is also subject to certain county, state and federal regulatory approvals, as well as other conditions, and is expected to take place in the fourth quarter of 2011. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

About Drake Center

Drake Center, a member of UC Health, is the region’s premier provider of long term acute care offering a complete range of inpatient and outpatient services including medically complex care; outpatient rehabilitation services including physical, occupational and speech therapy; diagnostic services; skilled nursing; assisted living; wellness services and research. Drake Center provides expert services for conditions requiring pulmonary/ventilator weaning and advanced wound care. For more information, visit www.DrakeCenter.com or call 513-418-2500.

About UC Health

UC Health includes University Hospital, ranked the best hospital in the region by US News and World Report; West Chester Hospital, Cincinnati’s newest hospital; Drake Center, Cincinnati’s premier provider of long term acute care; UC Physicians, Cincinnati’s largest specialty practice group with 650 board-certified clinicians and surgeons; the UC Cancer Institute; the UC Cardiovascular Institute; the UC Neuroscience Institute and the UC Diabetes and Endocrinology Institute. To learn more, visit UCHealth.com.

About HealthSouth

HealthSouth is the nation’s largest provider of inpatient rehabilitative healthcare services. Operating in 26 states across the country and in Puerto Rico, HealthSouth serves patients through its network of inpatient rehabilitation hospitals, long-term acute care hospitals, outpatient rehabilitation satellite clinics and home health agencies. HealthSouth can be found on the Web at www.healthsouth.com.

“We are delighted to welcome Drake Center and its employees into the UC Health family of physicians and hospitals,” said James A. Kingsbury, President and CEO of UC Health. “This marks the beginning of a new era of stability for the hospital, and we are excited about the many opportunities that lie ahead to build new partnerships with other providers who will help us position Drake for long-term success. Our goal is to ensure Drake Center continues to serve this community for generations to come.”

“This is a natural fit,” said George L. Strike, the Chair of the UC Health Board of Directors and the former Board Chair of the Drake Center. “Given UC Health’s expertise in solving the most medically complex cases, it is only natural to have a hospital in the family such as Drake that has expertise in providing the long-term, specialized care that many of our sickest patients need.”

“This is an exciting day for Drake Center and a positive step for the hospital and its patients,” said Kevin Flynn, Drake Center Board Chair. “UC Health will provide the stability and certainty that Drake Center needs and will be a good steward of the hospital.”

One of the first steps UC Health will take is to invest several million dollars in Drake Center to upgrade its electronic medical record (EMR) system. UC Health previously announced that it would upgrade its EMR for its member hospitals to the Epic system. UC Health will extend that upgrade to Drake as well. “We want to ensure we invest the appropriate resources at Drake Center so that it succeeds and that its clinicians will have access to the latest electronic medical record system,” said Kingsbury.

About UC Health

UC Health includes University Hospital, ranked the best hospital in the region by US News and World Report, West Chester Hospital, Cincinnati’s newest hospital; Drake Center, Cincinnati’s premiere provider of specialized and rehabilitative care; UC Physicians, Cincinnati’s largest specialty practice group with 650 board-certified clinicians and surgeons and an additional 200 nurse practitioners, physicians assistants, psychologists and certified nurse anesthetists; and several centers of excellence built around cardiovascular, cancer, diabetes and neuroscience services. To learn more, visit UCHealth.com.

About Drake Center

Drake Center, a member of UC Health, is the region’s premier provider of long-term acute care offering a complete range of inpatient and outpatient services including medically complex care, rehabilitative and diagnostic services, skilled nursing, assisted living, wellness services and research. Signature services include traumatic brain injury, spinal cord injury, stroke recovery, pulmonary/ventilator weaning, and advanced wound care. To learn more, visit UCHealth.com/Drake.

Press Contact

A. Condia
UC Health
513.584.1134
anthony.condia@uchealth.com

A $25,000 grant from The Sutphin Family Foundation will help fund the renovation of a transitional living suite at Drake Center. This suite helps patients with medically complex illnesses or injuries relearn basic tasks and increase personal independence in a home-like environment.

The Drake Foundation also received donations totaling an additional $25,000 from a local family to begin “The Life Continues Fund,” a special patient care and support fund that will purchase recreational and therapeutic patient care equipment to complement recovery at Drake Center. One of the donors, a former Drake patient who prefers to remain anonymous, was inspired by the high level of care and positive experience he had at Drake Center and wanted to use his resources to give hope to current patients.

“We are grateful for the bigheartedness of our community which does so much to give back to Drake,” said Drake Foundation President and Executive Director Reba George Dysart. “Our patients’ lives are radically changed because of this generosity.”

For more information on The Drake Foundation, call 513-418-5858.