As we continue to make progress in the fight against the pandemic, Lehigh Valley Health Network also is focused on the future and how to best meet the needs of the communities we serve by giving patients the health care access, experience and value they expect and deserve.

Brian A. Nester, DO, MBA, LVHN’s President and Chief Executive Officer, announced that the health network is centralizing operations to maximize efficiency.

“We are empowering leaders to create opportunities that will allow us to grow and better serve and care for our communities,” Nester said.

Nester said the following leaders will be heading up the effort and serving in new roles as part of LVHN’s operations team:

• John Fletcher, formerly president of Lehigh Valley Hospital–Hazleton, has been named senior vice president of operations for LVHN and vice president of operations at LVH-Cedar Crest.

• Terrence J. Purcell has been named president of the LVHN Northwest Region, which includes LVH–Hazleton, LVH–Schuylkill’s two hospital campuses and LVH–Carbon. Purcell will also serve as president of LVH–Hazleton.

• William “Bill” Reppy has been named vice president of operations for the Northwest Region. Reppy also serves as president of LVH–Schuylkill.

Nester said despite the pandemic, during the past three years LVHN has implemented $400 million in operational efficiencies. He said this puts the health network in a position of strength that allows for reinvestment in LVHN and growth in emerging markets so patients have greater access to the services they need.

Purcell said he looks forward to working with Reppy and expanding the services in the Northwest Region.

“I have known Bill for more than 30 years, and we worked together for several years at what is now LVH–Schuylkill E. Norwegian Street,” Purcell said. “We both had the opportunity to work in the Hazleton area, so we know the community and its people well.”

Reppy said the majority of his career has been devoted to making the region a stronger and healthier place to live, work and raise a family.

“It has been both a professional and personal objective and one in which I take great pride,” Reppy said. “This new position allows me to maintain my involvement in LVH–Schuylkill and my native Schuylkill County, return to LVH–Hazleton where I served for many years, and help introduce our new LVH–Carbon to the residents of Carbon County when it opens next year.”

Fletcher said that bringing the operational resources of LVH–Hazleton, LVH–Schuylkill and LVH–Carbon together under a unified leadership is the next logical step of service integration.

“LVH–Hazleton and LVH–Schuylkill have already been closely aligned, sharing resources, staff and providers that benefit both communities. Under the regional leadership of Terry Purcell and Bill Reppy, I am confident our communities will be well-served.”