CT HCC Member at Large Elections will take place on August 21, 2024 during the bimonthly meeting.
The Connecticut Health Care Coalition (CT HCC) will elect up to four Member at Large positions on Wednesday, August 21, 2024 during the coalition's bimonthly meeting which will take place between 12 and 2 PM ET. All Active Members (voting members) with a Membership Agreement on file can vote to elect Member(s) at Large. A nominee must have at least 51% of the vote to be elected.
If you are not currently invited to this meeting, but would like to participate, please contact coordinator@cthcc.org for more information. Coalition meetings are held virtually via zoom.
Reminder: Eligible Organizations MUST have a Member Agreement on file to vote in coalition business or elect Members at Large.
Meet the Nominees:
Jen Farley, Hospital for Special Care
Jay Gonzalez, Connecticut Children's
Brian Hunt, Northeast Safety Solutions LLC
Mary Grace Keating, Bristol-Burlington Health District
Jess Kristy, Connecticut Association of Directors of Health
Matthew Morrison, Hartford Hospital
Patrick Turek, Hartford HealthCare
Paul Wentworth, Johnson Memorial Hospital and Mercy Medical Center
Jen Farley, Hospital for Special Care
Jennifer currently serves as the Vice President of Quality, Risk Management, Patient Safety Officer and Incident Commander for Hospital for Special Care. As a leader in the Long Term Acute Care Hospital / Chronic Disease Hospital arena, Jennifer has worked to ensure preparedness for this level of care through active engagement and inclusion in the CT Healthcare Coalition and ESF-8 Region 3. Jennifer served as the Chairperson for ESF-8 from 2020-2023 and has been on the advisory panels for the restructuring of the CT HCC bylaws. Jennifer co-designed the current Memorandum of Understanding across HCC hospitals statewide in an effort to close gaps of risk and mutual benefit for all. Jennifer believes that there is a critical role that the Long Term Acute Care Hospitals can serve during times of disaster to support statewide efforts. Similarly, there are unique considerations which need to be accounted for when designing response plans and allocating resources. For these reasons, she has remained an active voice on the HCC since it’s inception. As a Fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives, Jennifer brings experienced leadership essentials to her efforts with the HCC.
Jay Gonzalez, Connecticut Children's
Jay Gonzalez currently serves as the Manager of Business Continuity and Emergency Management for Connecticut Children’s. In this role, Jay oversees all emergency management aspects, and is tasked with enhancing the organization's capability to respond effectively to any crisis, ensuring the safety and well-being of the patients, their families, the staff, and community. Prior to Connecticut Children’s, Jay served the University of Connecticut and UConn Health as an Emergency Management Program Specialist. Additionally, he was contracted as a Deputy Director of Operations, which was a contracted position for Integrated Emergency Management (IEM). There he oversaw the Virginia Department of Public Health’s mass COVID vaccination clinics, located throughout the state, with a small team.
In 2021, Jay retired as a firefighter/paramedic from the town of Manchester. During this time, Jay was an active member of the Capital Region Emergency Planning Council (CREPC) where he served as the co-chair for Regional Emergency Service Function 5 (RESF-5), as well as the co-chair for the training and exercise planning workshop. In addition, he also served as the Assistant Director of Emergency Management for the Town of South Windsor for 6 years. Through all of this, Jay attended American Military University, where he graduated with honors receiving a Bachelor of Arts degree in emergency and disaster management. He also attended Capella University, where he graduated with distinction with a graduate degree in emergency management. He has completed several FEMA Independent Study courses, the Master Exercise Practitioner program, All-hazards Incident Management Team, several position-specific courses, and all ICS courses.
Brian Hunt, Northeast Safety Solutions LLC
Brian Hunt has over 20 years in Public Safety, Occupational Safety and Health, Emergency Management, Public Health, EMS, and CPR instruction through AHA, ARC, and HSI. Brian holds a BS in Emergency Management. He is Certified in Community Disaster Preparedness for Healthcare, is an ICS Instructor, and holds many other certifications and instructor credentials.
Brian is an active participant with the Connecticut Health Care Coalition and has served on many workgroups. He is the founder & CEO of Northeast Safety Solutions, LLC, a Connecticut-based company that specializes in emergency preparedness planning, training, and consulting services.
Mary Grace Keating, Bristol-Burlington Health District
Mary Grace Keating has been the Emergency Preparedness Coordinator/Health Educator at Bristol-Burlington Health District (BBHD) since September 2022. Prior to working for BBHD, she was the Emergency Manager at Saint Mary’s Hospital in Waterbury, working there since
2013. She was an EMT, Paramedic, and Firefighter in the 1970s - early 80’s in CT, becoming a RN in the late 1970s and working in the Emergency Department (ED). She worked in Southern CA in the mid 1980’s through early 2002 primarily in the ED, and was also an EMT and Paramedic Program Instructor. Returning to CT shortly after 9/11, Mary Grace worked at CT DPH in the new Office of Public Health Preparedness (OPHP) and oversaw the Hospital Preparedness Program until retiring in April of 2014. While at DPH, she was
involved with the initial implementation of the HCC in CT. In addition, she was the State MRC Coordinator, the Emergency Credentialling Program (ECP) Coordinator (or ESAR-VHP), and was the Public Health Delegate from CT to the International Emergency Management Group (IEMG), in addition to serving on many National Working Groups and Committees. She has published many articles related to same.
In addition to my background in Emergency Nursing and Public Health, she was also
trained as a Naturalist while out in CA. When not in CT, she spends quite a bit of the off-season on the Outer Cape volunteering for the Center for Coastal Studies and the Dolphin Fleet Whale Watch, both in Provincetown, MA.
Jess Kristy, Connecticut Association of Directors of Health
Jessica Kristy, MPH is the Director of Health of the nationally accredited Naugatuck Valley Health. Her background and subject matter expertise is in emergency preparedness and response. She is the ESF-8 Chair and Regional Medical Reserve Corps Lead for DEMHS Region 5. She also serves as the Emergency Preparedness Committee Chair for the CT Association of Directors of Health and is expected to begin a term serving on the NACCHO Preparedness Policy Advisory Group. She is passionate about workforce development and helping prepare the future generation of public health professionals.
She is an Adjunct Professor for the University of Bridgeport/ Goodwin University combined MPH program, where she created and teaches a course on public health and healthcare emergency management. She earned her MPH and graduate certificate in Emergency Preparedness from New York Medical College and a BS in Safety Studies from Keene State College with minor in criminal justice. Jessica is an awardee of the de Beaumont Foundation's 40 under 40 in Public Health Class of 2023.
Matthew Morrison, Hartford Hospital
Matthew Morrison grew up in Stafford, CT. He developed an interest in Healthcare after volunteering as a firefighter & EMT-B for the town of Stafford. He went to UConn for pharmacy school, and graduated in 2016. From there, he completed a PGY-1 Pharmacy residency at Hartford Hospital and stayed with the institution ever since!
For the past 6 years, Matthew has been a clinical pharmacist at Hartford Hospital with a specialty of emergency medicine. He has always had an interest with emergency care/management, further fostered by the incident command team at Hartford Hospital who were able to help him attend a Healthcare Leadership course at the CDP in Alabama.
Patrick Turek, Hartford HealthCare
Patrick Turek, MPA, CEM, serves as Hartford HealthCare’s (HHC) Senior System Director of Public Safety and Emergency Management, where it’s his mission to ensure a prepared, response ready and resilient healthcare system. Patrick focuses his work on leading HHC’s efforts to standardize and integrate its safety, preparedness and resiliency efforts. Since 2010 he has been an active member and served in leadership roles in the Statewide response structure that includes: REPTs, ESF#8s, Healthcare Coalition, Connecticut Hospital Association, among others.
He holds a Bachelor of Art in Criminology for Central Connecticut State University and a Master of Public Administration from the University of Connecticut. Patrick is a Certified Emergency Manager from the International Association of Emergency Managers. He formerly served as an Emergency Medical Technician and Emergency Medical Services Instructor.
Paul Wentworth, Johnson Memorial Hospital and Mercy Medical Center
Paul Wentworth (Paramedic, EMS-I) serves in an emergency management capacity for Trinity Health of New England's integrated health care delivery system. At Johnson Memorial Hospital, he serves as the EMS, Emergency Management, and AHA Community Training Center Coordinator. He is also the Emergency Management Director at Mercy Medical Center. Further biography information will be added for Paul as it becomes available.