NEWS
Health Care Leadership Summit Review
The West Virginia State Medical Association( WVSMA) and the West Virginia Hospital Association( WVHA) joined for the fourth time to host the Health Care Leadership Summit at The Greenbrier. Held in late September, the summit is the largest annual gathering of healthcare leaders in West Virginia( WV).
Evans said her story has made her one of the most decorated female veterans in US history. She was a successful senior military intelligence analyst and paratrooper, operating in several high-tempo and dangerous missions around the world. In 2006, while working as a sergeant major in Afghanistan, a mortar blast threw her into a concrete bunker wall. She suffered a traumatic brain injury and lost 95 % of her hearing, ending her career in military service.
Evans received the Bronze Star for valor and heroism in combat and a Purple Heart for wounds she received in Afghanistan. After leaving the military, Evans founded Team UNBROKEN, a mixed-ability adaptive racing team made up mostly of veterans with life-altering injuries or trauma. She reminded attendees to give hope, noting that some of the best medicine one can provide is hope, which helps others keep fighting.
This year’ s summit began by honoring WVSMA Executive Director John Law who passed away in July 2025. Law played a pivotal role in bringing the joint WVSMA and WVHA Health Care Leadership Summit together each year since 2022 and was remembered for his dedicated service to WVSMA and the state.
The welcome and keynote address by Retired United States( US) Army Command Sergeant Major Gretchen Evans,“ Healing, Hope, and the Game-Changing Power of Your Rope Team,” energized attendees to do hard things on purpose and spoke about the power of yes in contributing to hope and partnerships.
Dan DeBehnke, MD, from the Coker Group focused on improving collaboration between clinical and administrative leadership in his talk“ From the Bedside to the Boardroom: Fixing the Fractured CEO / Physician Compact.” DeBehnke called on participants to practice courageous leadership to help restore fractured trust through engagement, activation, and ownership. Organizational culture often fractures when physicians feel unheard or sidelined. Effective collaboration— between physicians and administrators, education and practice, and policy and delivery— is more important than ever.
Personal safety in the healthcare setting was the theme of Eric Clay’ s session. As president of the International Association
West Virginia Medical Journal • December 2025 • 19