On Monday, August 28, 2017, Board President Reverend Jane Gould announced that the Board of Directors has selected Lynn Community Health Center Chief Medical Officer Kiame Mahaniah, MD, to become its next Chief Executive Officer. He will assume the new position on October 2, 2017.
Kiame Mahaniah, MD
“Lynn Community Health Center is an anchor institution in the city, and the breadth and depth of our search revealed the high esteem in which the center is held,” said Rev. Gould. “Working with Catlin Donnelly Associates, the Board’s search committee received and reviewed more than 140 applicants. The extraordinary talent of the pool of candidates is a testimony to the role LCHC plays in improving the health of our community and positively influencing health care policy at both state and national levels. In conversation after conversation, Dr. Mahaniah emerged as the strong and inspiring leader we had all hoped we would find.”
The search committee carefully reviewed materials and interviewed an impressive array of candidates. The task was to identify a person who would seek excellence every day in the provision of patient care, the development of the workforce, and the shaping of healthcare policy.
Dr. Mahaniah has had a long career of leadership in community health centers, with each leadership position progressively larger and more complex. Trained as a Family Physician, he has been a Medical Site Director, Faculty and Associate Director of a Family Medicine Residency Program, the Director of an Outpatient based Opioid Addiction Treatment Program at two different health centers, the Associate Medical Director of a large health center, and a Chief Medical Officer.
In his two years as CMO of the Lynn Community Health Center, he has demonstrated a passion for improving the patient experience and the quality of care. He has shown a strong interest in promoting the personal and career development of staff and kept his focus on the mission of the health center.
Longtime CEO Lori Berry, who will retire in October, commented, “Kiame has shown himself to be an inspirational and collaborative leader in the two years he has served as CMO. With his unwavering sense of social justice and tremendous respect for staff and patients, I am confident that the health center will be in good hands.”
In responding to his selection as the new CEO of the Lynn Community Health Center, Dr. Mahaniah commented, “My lifelong passion has been the pursuit of social justice while working in underserved communities. The opportunity to lead Lynn Community Health Center—one of the largest and most comprehensive community health centers in Massachusetts—is the opportunity of a lifetime. I am humbled by the responsibility but also tremendously excited.”
“The Board believes Dr. Mahaniah has the skills, knowledge, and attitude required to be the transformational leader that the Lynn Community Health Center needs in this era,” said Rev. Gould. “I hope the Lynn Community will join me in congratulating him in his new role.”