Salt Lake City—Today the One Utah Health Collaborative announced the expansion of its internal team as it prepares to launch Utah’s first healthcare Innovation Advisory Committee.
The Collaborative is an independent 501(c)(3) organization committed to addressing the growth of healthcare spending in Utah. It was launched by Gov. Spencer Cox last year. Through public and private funding, a community-centric approach, and emphasis on supporting innovation, the Collaborative aligns the community on a long-term roadmap to a better healthcare system.
From the Collaborative’s Executive Director James (Jaime) Wissler:
“We are thrilled to see genuine engagement from our healthcare community leaders and progress to date,” Wissler said. “The Collaborative’s consensus-based approach to achieving system-wide change in healthcare is revolutionary and we are excited to see impact already on the horizon. It will take all of us to achieve this mission and we want any and all Utahns who are passionate about health equity and affordability to be involved.”
The Collaborative’s most recent hires include John Poelman and Kelsey Koenen Witt. Poelman will serve as the Collaborative’s Director of Innovation. Koenen Witt will serve as Director of Communications and Marketing. More information on them can be found below.
The Collaborative has three organizational functions: Commit to Action, Align the Community, and Accelerate Innovation. To date, more than 60 Utah organizations have signed the Collaborative’s pledge while 20 have submitted organization-specific commitments that align with the Collaborative’s goals of affordability, equity, and outcomes. The Community Board, a consensus-based governance body, has grown to 36 members representing stakeholders including providers, payers, employers, government officials, and other industry leaders.
*Later this month, the Collaborative will announce members of Utah’s first Innovation Advisory Committee designed to advise on how to accelerate healthcare innovations in the state.*
About John Poelman:
John Poelman is the Director of Innovation at the One Utah Health Collaborative. In this role, John oversees the Collaborative’s statewide efforts to identify, promote, and scale health innovations that lower healthcare costs and improve outcomes. Prior to joining the Collaborative, John was a Managing Principal at Leavitt Partners where he helped clients understand and transition to alternative payment and care delivery models. In this role he also served as the executive director of the Accountable Care Learning Collaborative, an organization housed at Western Governors University, with a mission to accelerate the accountable care movement and provide more than 100 organizational members with actionable intelligence on value-based delivery system reform. John received his Master’s in Public Health from George Washington University. John is a husband, father to three boys, and an ice cream connoisseur.
About Kelsey Koenen Witt:
Kelsey Koenen Witt is the Director of Communications and Marketing at the One Utah Health Collaborative. She is responsible for all marketing and communications, building meaningful community and stakeholder relationships, upholding the organization’s mission and strategy, and acting as the main point of contact for all media relations. Kelsey has served in multiple challenging roles allowing her to connect with Utahns across the state with varied perspectives. Most recently, Kelsey was the Director of Communications and spokesperson for Evan McMullin’s campaign for the U.S. Senate. She has also worked as Director of Communications at Sutherland Institute and as an Executive Producer at KSL. She earned her master’s degree in mass communication from Brigham Young University and her bachelor’s degree in journalism from Utah State University. When she’s not working, she spends her time corralling her two boys (three if you count the new puppy) outside with her mountaineer husband.
