Current Initiatives (Current), is providing complimentary laundry services to lower-income residents at a local Nashville laundromat this weekend.

TriStar Southern Hills Medical Center has appointed Laura Reed, MSN, RN, CCRN, NEA-BC, as its chief nursing officer. Reed brings more than 28 years of nursing experience within HCA to her new role.

Scott Nalley, CPA, CISA, CIA, CCSFP, has been named the newest member of KraftCPAs. Nalley is in the Risk Assurance & Advisory Services Practice where his primary focus includes internal audit and internal control consulting projects.

Waller Lansden Dortch & Davis, LLP recently announced Abbey Mansfield Ruby has joined the firm's Nashville office.

Dustin Greene, FACHE, has been appointed CEO of TriStar Skyline Medical Center effective Feb. 1 where he will be responsible for operations of the 278-bed hospital, as well as the 121-bed behavioral health hospital TriStar Skyline Madison and related care areas serving communities in and around Middle Tennessee and Southern Kentucky.

Middle Tennessee has welcomed several new facilities and colleagues to the area in recent weeks.

Last month, Tennessee's Division of TennCare director Gabe Roberts announced he is leaving Tennessee state government to return to the private sector. His anticipated last day will be Monday, March 2, 2020. At press time, Governor Bill Lee had not yet named a successor to the position.

At the end of last year, Swedish-based Permobil announced Charles 'Chuck' Witkowski, II as executive vice president for the Americas. A leading producer of motorized wheelchairs and mobility solutions with a factory in Lebanon, Permobil selected Nashville-based Witkowski to advance its mission of moving people forward, literally and figuratively.

Nashville Vascular and Vein Institute (NVAVI) founder Patrick C Ryan, MD, FACS, FSVS, a board-certified vascular surgeon who holds several national roles focused on quality metrics and performance in the field, has joined a very small group in the region offering TransCarotid Artery Revascularization (TCAR).

Tim Jones, MD has been named chief medical officer for the Tennessee Department of Health where he will serve as an advisor to the commissioner on matters of health policy and assist in setting priorities for the department.

Sameer Gupta has been appointed managing director of First Horizon's Specialty Healthcare Group in Nashville.

LBMC recently announced Ann S. Brandt, PhD, as director of the firm's new Life Sciences Valuation and Consulting service line within the company's national healthcare practice.

Saint Thomas Rutherford announced two new executive leaders last month.

Last month, AdvancedHEALTH, Middle Tennessee's largest, independent, multi-specialty practice, announced the addition of Quoc Jonathan Tran, MD, pain management, to its growing group of providers.

Awards, Honors, Achievements

Saint Thomas West Hospital, a member of Ascension Saint Thomas, and Nephrology Associates, Middle Tennessee's largest provider of renal care, have announced an exclusive partnership to expand kidney transplant care.

At the end of 2019, Nashville-based Cumberland Pharmaceuticals announced approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for RediTrex™, its new line of methotrexate products.

All work and no play is no fun at all. The new Tennessee Vacation Guide is out with information on all there is to explore across the state.

The Alzheimer's Foundation of America (AFA) has awarded $5,000 in grant funding to Mental Health America of the MidSouth (MHA) to help fund their Aging and Alzheimer's Services program, which provides quality education and support to family members of those living with Alzheimer's and other dementia-related illnesses in Middle and West Tennessee.

In Southern states that expanded their Medicaid programs under the Affordable Care Act, adults experienced lower rates of decline in both physical and mental health, according to research published last month in the journal Health Affairs.

American College of Healthcare Executives of Middle Tennessee (ACHEMT), which represents over 700 healthcare leaders in the region, recently announced the elected 2020 board.

Nashville-based Montecito Medical, the nation's top privately held acquirer of medical office real estate, has expanded its team with the addition of Lucas McIntosh as an investment analyst.

In late 2019, Saint Thomas Midtown Hospital became the site of Middle Tennessee's first robotic bariatric surgery when James G. McDowell, MD, performed a successful sleeve gastrectomy using the powerful new da Vinci Xi system.

Cohen Veterans Network (CVN), a not-for-profit philanthropic organization that serves post-9/11 veterans and their families through a nationwide system of mental health clinics, and Centerstone, a national leader in behavioral healthcare, recently announced the appointment of Elizabeth Sherr as clinic director of the new Steven A. Cohen Military Family Clinic at Centerstone scheduled to open in Jacksonville, Fla, in March.

Solis Mammography, the nation's largest independent provider of breast screening and diagnostic services, in partnership with HCA TriStar Health, recently expanded access to 3D mammography screening with the opening of two new centers in Middle Tennessee.