Leadership
Dennis P. McKenna, MD
Dennis P. McKenna, MD, '92, is the President and Chief Executive Officer of the Albany Med Health System. As such, he oversees the largest hospital system in northeastern New York, with more than 100 locations in 25 counties; Albany Medical College, one of the nation’s oldest medical schools; a workforce of more than 9,300 at Albany Medical Center and 16,000 in the system; and an Albany Med Physicians Group of 500.
Dr. McKenna is an emergency medicine physician who joined Albany Medical Center in 2000. He has served as Medical Director of the Emergency Department, Medical Director of the Hospital, and President of the Albany Med Faculty Physician Group.
He spent 20 years in the military with numerous tours of combat duty in the Middle East and Africa. After graduation from medical school, he spent five years in service to the United States on active duty as a Medical Officer, including a deployment as a battalion surgeon for the Marines to Somalia. He joined the Reserves in 1997 and was mobilized to active duty three times after 9/11, including two tours with the Marines to Iraq. He retired as a Navy Captain.
A graduate of Christian Brothers Academy in Albany, Cornell University and Albany Medical College, Class of 1992, Dr. McKenna completed his residency at Albany Medical Center. He is board-certified in Emergency Medicine and continues to work as an attending physician.
He is a medical volunteer at the Double H Ranch in Lake Luzerne and serves on the organization’s Board of Directors. The ranch provides children with serious illnesses with a carefree camp experience in the Adirondacks.
The region’s only freestanding, regionally governed, not-for-profit health system, the Albany Med Health System includes Albany Medical Center, Albany Medical College, Visiting Nurses, Columbia Memorial Health, Glens Falls Hospital, and Saratoga Hospital. Harnessing the collective expertise of each organization, the System has 1,520 hospital beds, more than 800 physicians, and 125 locations serving three million people in 25 counties. The System is among the region’s largest private-sector employers with more than 16,000 employees.
Jason Mouzakes, MD
Jason Mouzakes, MD, ’95, is Executive Vice President and Hospital General Director at Albany Medical Center, Chair of the Department of Otolaryngology, and Professor of Otolaryngology and Pediatrics at Albany Medical College.
Dr. Mouzakes oversees employees of the Medical Center’s 766-bed hospital and manages Medical and Regulatory Affairs, Nursing, Ambulatory Services, Hospital Ancillary Services, and Emergency Management.
For more than 35 years, Dr. Mouzakes has been a familiar face in the Capital Region, and many of his personal and professional milestones intersect with Albany Medical Center and Albany Medical College. He is a graduate of the College Class of 1995. He completed a General Surgery residency and Otolaryngology residency at Albany Medical Center, followed by a Pediatric Otolaryngology fellowship at Children’s Hospital in Seattle. Dr. Mouzakes previously served as the chief of the Division of Otolaryngology and Section Chief for Pediatric Otolaryngology—or ear, nose, and throat (ENT)—before leading ENT to become its own department, joining the ranks of the most esteemed otolaryngology programs in the nation. He was named the department’s inaugural chair in 2022.
Dr. Mouzakes’ leadership has extended to numerous initiatives. He has been pivotal to enhancements in operating room utilization, support for the EMR project, and integration of the Albany Med Health System, seeing patients on both the Albany and Saratoga Springs campuses.
Dorothy M. Urschel, DNP
Dorothy M. Urschel, DNP, is the President and Chief Executive Officer of Columbia Memorial Health, a member of the Albany Med Health System.
In her role as President and CEO of Columbia Memorial Health, Urschel oversees Columbia Memorial Health, which traces their roots to 1889 and serves more than 100,000 residents in the primarily rural Columbia, Greene, and Dutchess counties. Their network includes a hospital with more than 100 beds and medical offices, both on their Hudson, N.Y., campus, as well as in 17 other locations. Their medical staff has 350 providers, and they employ 1,100.
Urschel has years of experience in clinical practice and administrative leadership in multiple organizations. She began her career as a critical care nurse and thoracic surgery nurse practitioner at the Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center and worked as an acute care cardiac surgery nurse practitioner with Kaleida Health in Buffalo. In 2007, Urschel joined St. Peter’s Hospital in Albany, and when St. Peter’s Health Partners was formed, Urschel served as vice president of cardiac and vascular services across the system and as vice president of operations and chief nursing officer for Albany Memorial Hospital.
Urschel came to CMH in 2020 as chief operating officer. She has been integral to the execution of CMH’s Covid-19 response plan, recruitment efforts, and financial strategy. Urschel is also a leader on the team at CMH working to implement a single electronic medical record (EMR) across the Albany Med Health System. The EMR will link all hospitals within the system, allowing patients to access multiple levels of care more seamlessly.
Urschel has also held academic positions at the University at Buffalo, and Daemen University in Amherst, N.Y. Her clinical research and writing have been cited in numerous professional publications. Dr. Urschel received a nursing degree from Niagara College in Ontario, Canada, and a master’s degree as a family nurse practitioner from Niagara University in Lewiston, N.Y. She obtained a Master of Business Administration degree from the University at Albany, and Doctor of Nursing Practice degree from the University at Buffalo. In 2017, she was honored by the YWCA of the Greater Capital Region with its Resourceful Woman award.
Jill J. VanKuren, MBA, FACHE
Jill Johnson VanKuren, MBA, FACHE, is the President and Chief Executive Officer of Saratoga Hospital, a member of the Albany Med Health System.
VanKuren leads Saratoga Hospital, the only acute-care facility in Saratoga County, as well as the hospital’s multispecialty practice, Saratoga Hospital Medical Group, which provides care at more than 20 locations throughout Saratoga Springs and surrounding communities.
VanKuren was appointed to the role of president and chief executive officer of Saratoga Hospital in 2022. With more than 25 years of health care experience, VanKuren previously served as senior vice president of operations and chief operating officer at MedStar Franklin Square Medical Center in Maryland.
A graduate of East Carolina University in North Carolina, VanKuren holds a master’s degree in Business Administration, with a specialization in health care administration, from Loyola University Maryland. She is board certified in Healthcare Management by the American College of Healthcare Executives.
VanKuren is a member of the advisory board of Women in Healthcare. She also has served on the behavioral health advisory group of the Maryland Hospital Association and on the board of the National Alliance for Mental Illness Metropolitan Baltimore.
Paul Scimeca
Paul Scimeca is the President and Chief Executive Officer of Glens Falls Hospital, a member of the Albany Med Health System.
Glens Falls Hospital, founded in 1897, serves more than 150,000 residents in the primarily rural Essex, Hamilton, northern Saratoga, Warren, and Washington counties. The hospital in Glens Falls, N.Y., has 391 certified beds with offices in 20 locations. Their medical staff has more than 550 providers, and they employ 2,300.
Scimeca joined the hospital in 1989, holding positions of increasing responsibility, including the Communications Manager, Director of Community Services, Executive Director of Adirondack Medical Services, and Vice President of Physician Practice and Community Health where he oversaw the hospital’s network of employed physician practices, including primary and specialty care physicians in 16 practices throughout the region. He also led in the development and implementation of the hospital’s community health programs. In 2015, Scimeca was named Senior Vice President and Chief Operating Officer; as such, Scimeca led the organization’s Covid response, coordinating inpatient and outpatient care, staff response, and community engagement. In 2022, he was named President and CEO.
He earned a bachelor’s degree in Planning and Development from New York University in New York City and a master’s degree in Health Services Administration from the Sage Graduate College in Albany, N.Y.
An active member of the American College of Healthcare Executives and the Medical Group Management Association, Scimeca is also an Adjunct Professor in the Graduate Healthcare
Administration programs of Clarkson University, in Schenectady, N.Y.
He served on the Board of Directors of Tri-County United Way and the Glens Falls Family YMCA.
Samantha DiCicco, RN, MBA
Samantha DiCicco, RN, MBA, is the Chief Executive Officer of the Albany Med Health System Visiting Nurses, a member of the Albany Med Health System. This nursing organization includes the VNA of Albany, Visiting Nurses Home Care, the Visiting Nurse Foundation, and the Albany Med Health System Staffing Alliance.
Named CEO of the Visiting Nurses in 2022, DiCicco heads the region’s second largest home health care agency with more than 400 nurses, rehab therapists, social workers, home health aides, personal care aides, and an additional 60 staff. They serve more than 3,750 patients annually in 11 counties in the greater Capital Region, including – Albany, Columbia, Fulton, Greene, Montgomery, Rensselaer, Saratoga. Schenectady, Schoharie, Warren, and Washington.
Previously, DiCicco was the Administrator/Executive Director of Home Services at Yale New Haven Hospital in New Haven, Conn. There she established a home health program for the largest health system in Connecticut and implemented state-of-the-art technology for three home health agencies. She also served as the CEO of the Visiting Nurses Association of South Central Connecticut, also in New Haven, where she negotiated and completed a merger with Yale New Haven Health System. Prior to serving as CEO, she was Vice President of Quality and Technology. She began her career as a home health field nurse.
A graduate of Southern Connecticut State University with bachelor’s degrees in nursing and Spanish, DiCicco received a Master of Business degree in Healthcare Management from Western Governors University in Salt Lake City, Utah.
During the Covid pandemic, she helped provide homebound patients in the New Haven area with vaccinations. She also was involved in providing annual wellness visits to patients and served on the quality committee of Connecticut’s Home Health Association.
Frances Spreer Albert, CPA
Frances Spreer Albert, CPA, is the Senior Executive Vice President, Chief Operating Officer, and Chief Financial Officer of Albany Medical Center. She also plays a leading role in the growth of the Albany Med Health System.
In her roles at Albany Medical Center, Spreer Albert is responsible for the oversight of Finance, Revenue Cycle, Treasury, Corporate Compliance, Security, Facilities, and Human Resources, including workforce engagement and optimization. To support the health of Albany Medical Center, she develops and implements strategic programs and initiatives.
Spreer Albert joined Albany Medical Center in 2000 following a career with the global accounting firm KPMG. She has played key roles in Albany Medical Center’s major initiatives, including the building of the $360 million Patient Pavilion and the $50 million Massry Family Children’s Emergency Center, redevelopment of the Park South neighborhood, and expansion of Albany Med services further into regional communities. She is spearheading a multiyear plan to implement a unified electronic medical record and enterprise resource planning process for all Albany Med Health System hospitals and physician practices.
Spreer Albert, who earned a bachelor’s degree in Business from the University at Albany, serves on the Advisory Board of the Bank of Greene County and the University at Albany School of Business.
A strong proponent of giving back to the community, she volunteers for Special Olympics New York, the northeastern New York chapter of the Alzheimer’s Association, and Ronald McDonald House Charities of the Capital Region. With Albany Med colleagues, Spreer Albert also delivers meals to homes for the Equinox Annual Thanksgiving Community Dinner.
Alan Boulos, MD, MHCDS
Alan Boulos, MD ’94, is the 18th Dean of Albany Medical College, one of the oldest private medical colleges in the United States, founded in 1839. He was named to the position in 2022.
As such, he oversees the work of more than 2,000 staff, including biomedical scientists in four interdisciplinary research centers and more than 500 faculty physicians. Nearly 840 medical and graduate students are enrolled in the College, which confers the doctoral degree in medicine, Master of Science degree in Nurse Anesthesiology, Master of Science degree in Physician Assistant Studies, and Master of Science and doctoral degrees in biomedical sciences and bioethics.
The third alumnus of the College and first neurosurgeon to be named to the medical school’s top position, Dr. Boulos joined Albany Medical Center in 2002, was named chief of the Division of Neurosurgery in 2009, and became the inaugural chair of the Department of Neurosurgery in 2013. He is also the Herman and Sunny Stall Chair of Endovascular Surgery, founding director of Neurovascular Surgery, and professor of Neurosurgery and Radiology. Under his oversight, the former Division of Neurosurgery was granted departmental status in response to their growth as well as the strength of their clinical, academic, and research pursuits.
Dr. Boulos, who performs some of the most advanced neurosurgical and minimally invasive procedures available, specializes in the surgical and endovascular management of cerebrovascular disorders of the brain and spine, including stroke, cerebral aneurysm, carotid and intracranial vessel stenosis, and arteriovenous malformation (AVM), as well as complex skull-base surgery for brain tumors.
A graduate of the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, N.Y., and Albany Medical College physician-scientist joint degree program, he completed his neurosurgery residency at Albany Medical Center before completing a fellowship in neuroendovascular surgery at Millard Fillmore Hospital in Buffalo.
The author of numerous publications, Dr. Boulos is a member of several professional societies, including the American College of Surgeons, the American Heart Association, the American Association of Neurological Surgeons, the Congress of Neurological Surgeons, the Cerebrovascular Section of the AANS and CNS, and the Society of Neurointerventional Surgery.
Active in the community, Dr. Boulos served on the Board of Advisors of the Capital Region American Heart Association from 2016-2022 and was president from 2020-2022.
He is a member of the Board of Directors of the Doane Stuart School in Rensselaer, N.Y.
Kristopher Kusche
Kristopher Kusche is Senior Vice President and System Chief Information Officer of the Albany Med Health System.
Kusche joined Albany Medical Center in 1993 as Director of Clinical Engineering rising to their System Chief Information Security Officer, responsible for all technology security policy, operations, investigation, enforcement, and assurance. He was named the Senior Vice President and System Chief Information Officer in 2021 after serving as Interim System Chief Information Officer.
Kusche earned both his bachelor’s and master’s of Engineering degrees in Biomedical Engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, N.Y., and is a Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP) and HealthCare Information Security and Privacy Practitioner (HCISPP) from the International Information Systems Security Certification Consortium. He is also a Certified Professional in Healthcare Information and Management Systems (CPHIMS) from the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS).
Kusche has long been involved in the community, both professionally and personally. He is a member of Excelsior College’s Industry Advisory Committee, the University at Albany’s Cyber Security Advisory Board, and the Health Devices Advisory Board for the Emergency Care Research Institute (ECRI). A volunteer with the Boy Scouts of America, he serves on the Board of Directors of the Twin Rivers Council and is the Vice President of Membership.
Matthew C. Jones
Matthew C. Jones is Executive Vice President and General Counsel for the Albany Med Health System.
Jones joined Albany Medical Center in 2017 as Senior Vice President and General Counsel and assumed responsibility for the System’s legal matters in 2021. As such, he expanded the legal services provided by the Albany Med Legal Department to include representation of Columbia Memorial Health, Saratoga Hospital, Glens Falls Hospital, and the Visiting Nurses, in addition to Albany Medical Center, Albany Medical College, and their subsidiary organizations.
He was lead Counsel for the System’s affiliations with Glens Falls Hospital and the Visiting Nurses, and Counsel for structuring an ambulatory surgery center joint venture in Malta, with the Bone & Joint Center. He handled all the legal work for Better Health for Northeastern New York, Inc., and chaired the committee that negotiated with the New York State Nurses Association for an initial collective bargaining agreement.
Previously, Jones was a partner at Duane Morris LLP in Philadelphia, where he served numerous clients as outside Counsel, including the Harvard Medical Faculty Physicians at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston, the Beth Israel Deaconess Care Organization in Westwood, Mass., many nonprofit hospitals and health systems, physician groups, and HMOs throughout the United States. He began his career as a Chemical Engineer at National Starch & Chemical Company in Bridgewater, N.J.
At the request of his peers, Jones has spoken, presented, and moderated at various law schools, legal conferences, and bar associations’ meetings, also across the United States.
He holds a bachelor’s degree in Chemical Engineering from Lafayette College in Easton, Pa., and a Juris Doctorate, summa cum laude, from Temple University in Philadelphia. He was a volunteer for Philadelphia Volunteers for the Indigent for 20 years and was on the Board of Directors for three, serving on the Finance Committee.
