Richard D'Aquila named president and chief operating officer at Yale New Haven Hospital

2/13/12 — Richard D'Aquila, who has served as the executive vice president and chief operating officer at Yale New Haven Hospital for the past six years, has been appointed president of YNHH. He will continue in his role as the Hospital's chief operating officer (COO).

Marna P. Borgstrom, YNHH president and CEO since 2005, will remain YNHH's chief executive officer (CEO), as well as president and CEO of Yale New Haven Health System.

The changes in the two senior leadership roles were made to strengthen the role of the president and help prepare Yale New Haven Hospital for a rapidly changing future.

"As the challenges associated with healthcare reform continue to consume more time and resources, it is important to make the Office of the President even more effective to support the continued strong performance of the Hospital," said Borgstrom. "Rick and I have worked very collaboratively in an Office of the President model in which the CEO and COO act in concert on behalf of the organization, so this new role is a natural extension of that philosophy."

The change allows both Borgstrom and D'Aquila to focus on areas vital to success as both a hospital and as a health system. D'Aquila will continue to drive Yale New Haven Hospital's vision to be a regional and national referral center with multiple patient care specialties ranked among the best in the country. Borgstrom will focus more heavily on broad strategies to strengthen the System and enhance value, as well as develop and implement a thoughtful approach to federal health care reform.

D'Aquila received his graduate degree in hospital administration from the Yale School of Medicine and his bachelor's degree in economics from Central Connecticut State University. Before joining Yale New Haven Hospital in 2006, he was a senior vice president and chief operating officer of New York Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center. Previously, D'Aquila was executive vice president and chief operating officer at St. Vincent's Medical Center in Bridgeport.

"Rick and I will continue to work together on many initiatives like the acquisition of the Hospital of Saint Raphael, which is important both to the Hospital and the Health System," said Borgstrom. "These are extraordinary times for Yale New Haven Hospital, the Health System and for U.S. health care. We must be prepared for the incredible changes ahead."

Yale New Haven Hospital (YNHH), part of Yale New Haven Health, is a nationally recognized, 1,541-bed, not-for-profit hospital serving as the primary teaching hospital for the Yale School of Medicine (YSM). Founded as the fourth voluntary hospital in the U.S. in 1826, today, YNHH has two New Haven-based campuses, and also includes Yale New Haven Children's Hospital, Yale New Haven Psychiatric Hospital and Smilow Cancer Hospital. YNHH has received Magnet designation from the American Nurses Credentialing Center, the nation’s highest honor of nursing excellence. YNHH has a combined medical staff of about 4,500 university and community physicians practicing in more than 100 specialties. www.ynhh.org