Karl Keeler, chief executive of Providence Saint Joseph Medical Center, has assumed an additional role as the newly named chief executive of the Providence L.A.-Valley Service Area.
Keeler, who came to Providence in August 2022, will continue to lead the Burbank hospital but now also has oversight over Providence Cedars-Sinai Tarzana, in partnership with Cedars-Sinai and Providence Holy Cross medical centers.
“I’m truly grateful for this opportunity to work with our Valley leaders to enhance care across our communities,” Keeler said. “I look forward to working together to learn from one another and continue the raise the bar on excellence, compassion and innovation.”
The service area model is designed to share expertise and strategies across the Valley to better align the three hospitals, Providence physician groups, outpatient services and the organization’s Clinical Institutes that drive quality and innovation across California operations.
Goals include enhancing patient access, disease prevention and health equity, linking primary providers, ambulatory centers, hospitals and other services to improve quality, reduce costs and define a health care continuum for patients, Providence officials said.
The Valley is one of four newly created service areas within the Providence South Division, which encompasses all of California. Operations on the Westside and South Bay have combined to form the L.A.-Coastal service area, Orange County and High Desert operations comprise the new OC/HD service area and the six Providence hospitals spread across the northern part of the state make up the Northern California service area.
In this new role, Keeler reports directly to Laureen Driscoll, chief executive of Providence South.
“A veteran health care executive, Karl has the experience and vision needed to strategically unite our operations across a large and diverse swath of northern Los Angeles County,” Driscoll said. “He shares our vision of a service area that provides each patient with the best of the best in personalized care, developed through shared expertise.”
Prior to joining Providence, Keeler served as president of MercyOne Central Iowa Region, and previously served as president and chief executive officer of Saint Alphonsus Regional Medical Centers in Oregon and Idaho.
First published in the January 6 print issue of the Burbank Leader.
