David M. Christensen, MD, MS, FAAP Announced as New Chief Medical Officer Children's Hospital of Central California
St. Louis (March 11, 2010) - Deedra Hartung, Senior Executive Vice President, Managing Director with Cejka Executive Search, is pleased to announce that Children's Hospital of Central California in Madera, California has selected David M. Christensen, MD, MS, FAAP for the leadership role of Chief Medical Officer.
In his new position, Dr. Christensen will provide the leadership essential to achieve the continued development and success of Children's Hospital of Central California by playing a key role in the areas of quality, patient safety, clinical integration, medical staff policies, research, medical education and technology.
Bringing over 12 years of extensive experience in clinical quality and safety to his new role, Dr. Christensen formerly served as Senior Vice President of Medical Affairs and Chief Medical Officer of Children's Hospital & Medical Center in Omaha, Nebraska, a 145-bed free-standing children's hospital. During his 2-year tenure, he succeeded in coordinating the successful affiliation with the University of Nebraska, College of Medicine, integrating a 130-member pediatric physician group, and achieving significant quality and service improvements. He also was responsible for implementing their EMR inpatient and outpatient systems and expanding their hospitalist program to include 24/7 in-house coverage.
Deedra Hartung cites her engagement with the Children's Hospital of Central California search committee and senior leadership as being fundamental to the successful placement of their new Chief Medical Officer. "Children's Hospital of Central California is a dynamic and successful regional pediatric medical center. It was a pleasure to work with the senior leadership at Children's Hospital of Central California who understood the value of our process, and which produced a top CMO candidate who not only had the right skill set, but who also would fit well with the organizational and community culture," Deedra explained. "Dr. Christensen is an exemplary leader and I am confident he will make a significant positive impact at Children's Hospital of Central California."