FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT:
Cheryl Kauffman, 215-750-4255, ckauffman@woods.org
Woods Services Names Dinetta Armstrong, MBA, as Senior Vice President of Woods Healthcare, and Executive Director of The Medical Center at Woods
Armstrong will help expand Woods’ integrated care model in New Jersey and Pennsylvania.
LANGHORNE, Pa. (Sept. 15, 2023) – Woods Services, part of the Woods System of Care, has brought on board a key new senior leader, Dinetta Armstrong, MBA, as Senior Vice President of Woods Healthcare and Executive Director of The Medical Center at Woods. Armstrong is responsible for health services across the Woods System of Care, a $450 million network across Pennsylvania and New Jersey that provides lifelong care for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities, autism, brain injury, and behavioral health challenges who may also have complex medical and genetic conditions.
Armstrong is responsible for advancing Woods’ growth in managed care and value-based reimbursement. She will further the integration of Woods Health Services—the NCQA-certified Medical Center at Woods, Penn Dental at Woods, and the Center for Behavioral Health—along with the development of an integrated medical and behavioral health center at RWJBarnabas in Hamilton, New Jersey. Armstrong will work with Sailaja Musunuri, MD, Woods’ executive vice president of integrative medicine and chief of psychiatry, and Stephen Kolesk, MD, Woods’ vice president for medical affairs and managed care/chief medical officer, to lay the groundwork to replicate the integrated care model in strategic locations of high need.
The integrated care model is part of an overall population health management approach that focuses on whole-person care and recognizes the importance of addressing all of a person’s needs to attain the best possible health and behavioral outcomes. That includes acknowledging the social determinants of health (socioeconomic factors, education, geographic location, membership in an under-represented group, access to transportation, etc.), which play deep and meaningful roles in a person’s health and well-being. In the integrated care model, healthcare and other service providers work together seamlessly to eliminate gaps in care.
“Individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities and autism face enormous barriers to care and, as a result, experience poorer health outcomes, lower quality of life, and higher healthcare costs than the general population,” said Tine Hansen-Turton, President and CEO of Woods Services and the Woods System of Care. “Dinetta will play an integral role in helping expand our evidence-based integrated care model to break down the barriers to quality care.”
“I’m passionate about the power of integrated care to improve the health and well-being of this underserved population,” Armstrong said. “I look forward to developing more partnerships like the one Woods has with RWJ Barnabas Health and Rutgers University.” RWJ Barnabas Health, Rutgers University Behavioral Health Care, and Woods Services are joining forces to establish the first integrated healthcare center for individuals with ID/A at Robert Woods Johnson University Hospital Hamilton in early 2024. The center is the first of many more of its kind to come.
Armstrong will also use her expertise to help the Medical Center at Woods’ satellite location at Brian’s House in Exton, Pa., expand to serve more people in Chester County and incorporate new behavioral health services there. The Medical Center at Woods serves as a national model for providing comprehensive, coordinated personalized care for people with complex diagnoses and medical conditions. In April 2023, the Medical Center at Woods was awarded Recognition by the National Committee for Quality Assurance Patient-Centered Medical Home Program (www.ncqa.org).
Armstrong has more than 25 years of experience working in healthcare administration, including hospitals, managed care, and Federally Qualified Health Centers that provided integrated primary and behavioral healthcare, including wraparound services, to the underserved community in Philadelphia. She has a wealth of experience cultivating new business opportunities to ensure growth, progress, and expansion, as well as working to improve standards of care and quality of service.
Armstrong received her B.S. in health policy and administration from Penn State University, and her M.B.A in health care administration from Temple University.
About Woods System of Care
The Woods System of Care is a $450 million, nonprofit population health organization with 10 affiliates and related organizations and 6,600 employees across PA and NJ. Woods offers integrated healthcare services across the lifespan, including mental and physical healthcare, education, housing, and residential treatment. and employment services for an estimated 27,000 children and adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities, autism, brain injury, and behavioral health challenges who may also have complex medical and genetic conditions. Woods System of Care services enable seamless transitions from one level of care to another.
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