Brian Canfield, MHA, MBA, MA
President/CEO
Brian Canfield, MHA, MBA, MA, FACHE, became President/Chief Executive Officer, Blessing Health, on July 1, 2023. He joined Blessing in December 2021 as Chief Operating Officer of Blessing Health, assuming the role of Blessing Hospital President in August 2022.
Prior to joining Blessing, Mr. Canfield served nine years as chief operating officer at First Health of The Carolinas and Moore Regional Hospital, Pinehurst, North Carolina. He was responsible for three acute care hospitals totaling 509 beds, a critical access hospital, and a staff of 4,500 employees and 950 volunteers.
Mr. Canfield is a veteran, having served 28 years in the United States Army and Department of Defense. His final assignment was as CEO/Commanding Officer of Womack Army Medical Center, Fort Bragg, North Carolina. Mr. Canfield was the first non-physician selected to command the 340-bed-capable tertiary care teaching hospital with eight multi-specialty ambulatory care centers and primary care medical home clinics, serving a community of more than 185,000 patients.
He also served in Afghanistan where he was responsible for planning, coordination and synchronization of 12 hospitals, 32 clinics, 14 forward surgical teams, and all ground and air medical evacuation resources in Afghanistan for over a half-million US military and partner nation forces.
Mr. Canfield holds master’s degrees in healthcare administration, business administration and national security and strategic studies. He is a Fellow in the American College of Healthcare Executives and past Regent for the State of North Carolina.
Mary Frances Barthel, MD, MHCM, SFHM, FACP
Chief Quality and Safety Officer
Mary Frances Barthel, MD, MHCM, SFHM, FACP joined the Blessing Health System in September of 2011 as the first Medical Director for the Hospitalist program. She was selected as the Chief Quality and Safety Officer in January of 2015. In this role she oversees Infection Prevention, Quality and Performance Improvement, and Utilization Management. She practices part time as a hospitalist with our Blessing Hospital From Home Program.
Dr. Barthel received her Medical Degree from the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health and her Internal Medicine training at the Medical College of Wisconsin. She later started the first hospitalist program at Gundersen Health in LaCrosse, Wisconsin where she practiced medicine for 9 years before moving to Quincy. While at Gundersen Health, she was elected Chief of Medicine and was active in hospital operations, leading initiatives in hospital flow, creating a new observation unit and a new admission/transfer unit.
She is a proud graduate of the Harvard School of Public Health where she earned her Masters Degree in Healthcare Management in 2020. This prepared her to assist in the region’s response to the Covid-19 Pandemic, where Blessing’s patient outcomes were significantly better than elsewhere in the nation.
Dr. Barthel is active with the United Way of Adams County, serving on their Board of Directors. She also partners with the United Way and with the Adams County Health Dept to complete the Community Health Needs Assessment and implement associated projects to improve the health of our community, including initiatives concerning behavioral health needs, housing insecurity, and the overall impact of poverty to community health and well being.
Brenda Beshears, PhD, RN, President and CEO
Blessing-Rieman College of Nursing and Health Sciences
Brenda Beshears, PhD, RN became President/Chief Executive Officer, Blessing-Rieman College of Nursing and Health Sciences on August 1, 2015. She joined Blessing in 1985 as a Staff Nurse, transitioned to the College in 1991 as a faculty member, and assumed the role of the Academic Dean in 2007.
Dr. Beshears obtained her PhD in Nursing from the University of Missouri – Columbia in 2010; her MSN in 1991 from Southern Illinois University – Edwardsville; her Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Hannibal LaGrange University in 1988 and her Associate of Science in Nursing from Hannibal LaGrange in 1985.
Dr. Beshears’ research has focused on Student’s Lived Experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic, Student’s Lived Experiences with Simulation, and Emerging Technologies in Nursing Education.
The past two years she has served as the Lead Researcher with a 1.5-million-dollar grant from HRSA to support Respiratory Care to improve the health of our community through education.
Dr. Beshears is a charter member of the Pi Pi chapter of Sigma Theta Tau International Nursing Honor Society, she was appointed by the Illinois Attorney General to serve as a member of the Sexual Assault Task Force in 2018, she is active with the Illinois and Missouri Deans and Directors as well as the American Nurses Association and the Consortium of Hospital Affiliated Colleges and Universities.
Julie Duke, MJ, MA, RHIA
Chief Revenue Cycle Officer
Julie Duke joined Blessing Hospital in 2001 as a Financial Analyst. In 2002, she was promoted to Director of Health Information Management, a role that she held until 2005 when she became Administrative Director. During her tenure at Blessing Health System, Julie has overseen various departments including Health Information Management, Patient Access, Patient Financial Services, Quality Management, Medical Staff, Care Management, and Decision Support. Julie was promoted to Chief Revenue Cycle Officer in 2022.
Julie has a Bachelors in Health Information Management from Illinois State University, a Masters in Healthcare Informatics from College of St. Scholastica in Duluth, Minnesota, and a Masters of Jurisprudence in Health Law from Loyola University in Chicago, Illinois. She is a certified Registered Health Information Administrator. Julie is a member of the American Health Information Management Association, the Illinois Health Information Management Association, and the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society.
Julie and her husband, Daron, reside on their farm and have two children. Julie has been involved in several community organizations.
Lea Ann Eickelschulte
Chief Technology Officer
Lea Ann Eickelschulte is the Chief Information Officer at the Blessing Health System and has worked at Blessing since 1998. She began at Blessing as a Programmer Analyst, then moved to Director of IT, and Administrative Director of IT before being promoted to Chief Information Officer of the Health System in 2016. Eickelschulte has responsibility for the Information Technology footprint, which includes Applications, Infrastructure, Hardware, HelpDesk, Informatics, Information Security and Telecommunications. Before her career at Blessing, she worked within IT at the Quincy Soybean / ADM Manufacturing Plant for 7 years.
Lea Ann has a Bachelor’s Degree in Computer Science and Math, with a minor in German, from Murray State University in Murray, KY, where she played Division I varsity volleyball for four years. She also received a Master’s Degree in Information Systems from the University of Phoenix.
Eickelschulte is a member of HIMSS (Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society) as well as CHIME (College of Healthcare Information Management Executives.)
Patrick Gerveler
Executive Vice President/Chief Financial Officer
Mr. Gerveler has served as the Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer for Blessing Corporate Services, Inc. (Blessing Health System) since April 2003. Mr. Gerveler joined Blessing in 1992, and during his thirty plus years with the organization has served as Accounting Supervisor, Manager of Reimbursement, Director of Fiscal Services and Vice President of Finance and Senior Vice President of Finance for Blessing Hospital before assuming his corporate duties. In 2007, Mr. Gerveler also assumed the role as President for The Blessing Foundation, Inc.
Mr. Gerveler began his career in cost accounting for an international publishing company. Before joining Blessing, he was with the regional public accounting firm.
Mr. Gerveler holds a Master’s in Business Administration and a Bachelor of Science Degree in Accounting.
He currently volunteers on local boards and the Illinois Hospital Association’s CFO Forum. Mr. Gerveler has accumulated over 51 years of total board service to ten community boards in the Quincy area.
Justin Hale
Vice President, Finance
Justin Hale joined Blessing in November of 2003 as his first job out of college. He has held a variety roles in finance and analytics over his 20 plus years of service. One of these roles was a brief stent in process improvement where he earned his lean, six-sigma black belt. Justin was promoted to Vice President of Finance in April of 2023.
Justin’s earned his Bachelor’s of Science in Business Administration from Western Illinois University. Then, after a few years of work, went on to obtain his Masters of Business Administration from William Woods University.
Justin and his wife, Megan, both work at Blessing and live in Quincy, IL with their daughter.
Diane Jacoby, J.D., LL.M.
Chief Legal Officer
Diane Jacoby, J.D., LL.M. has been at Blessing since 2021. Prior to that she worked in Chicago as Interim General Counsel at Sinai Health System and as Vice President and General Counsel of UChicago Medicine Ingalls. She also worked as an associate attorney at Sandberg Phoenix and Lashley & Baer, P.C., both in St. Louis, Missouri. Ms. Jacoby was President of the Illinois Association of Hospital Attorneys from 2004 to 2005 and served on its Board of Directors from 2001 to 2006.
She is a member of the American Health Lawyers Association and the Illinois State Bar Association, where she served on the Health Law Section Council. Ms. Jacoby is a contributing author and editor for the Law of Medical Practice in Illinois.
She has a B.A. from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, an M.S. from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, a J.D. from North Carolina Central University and an LL.M. from DePaul University School of Law. She is a member of the North Carolina, Illinois and Missouri bars.
Holly Jones, RN, MSN
Vice President/Administrator, Illini Community Hospital
Holly A Jones joined Illini Community Hospital as the Administrative Director of Nursing in 2010, and in 2018 she became the Assistant Administrator. In 2022, she then was promoted to the role of Vice President/Administrator.
Holly began her career at Blessing Hospital in 2000 as ADN graduate from JWCC and was employed as a registered nurse in the Emergency Dept. She worked in the Dialysis Units and Performance Excellence earning her Black Belt Certification in Lean Six Sigma. She obtained a bachelor’s degree in nursing from BRCN in 2003 as well as her, master’s degree in nursing from BCRN in 2013.
Holly accomplishments include the Studer Group’s “Difference Maker Award”, nominated by her peers in 2017. Studer Group works with healthcare organizations around the world to help them achieve and sustain exceptional improvement in critical organizational outcomes. The Difference Maker award honors an individual who embodies the personal and professional values that make a difference in healthcare.
Among her civic and professional involvement, Holly has been the Illinois Organization of Nurse Leader Chapter president from 2014-2018, a member of the JWCC Foundation Board and the JWCC Health Advisory Board. She has also been a member of the Pike County Economic Development Committee and the Sigma Theta Tau, nursing honor society.
Holly and her husband, Bobby, reside in Pleasant Hill. Their three children live in Alaska and Illinois. They also have three grandchildren.
Susan Long, Chief Operating Officer
Denman Services, Inc.
Susan Long is the Chief Operating Officer for Denman Services, Inc. and has been with the Blessing Health System since 1981. Susan has a Bachelor’s degree in Accounting from Northeast Missouri State University (now Truman State). Ms. Long completed the Leadership Academy Fellowship program through the Healthcare Advisory Board in 2006 and obtained her MBA from William Woods University in 2011.
She has held many positions within the finance division of Blessing Hospital and in 1998 became the Vice President of Finance for Denman Services. In 2002 she was appointed Secretary of the corporation and was appointed to her current position in 2019. In June of 2010, she was the recipient of the Blessing Health System Fire Starter Award. Ms. Long resides in rural Lewis County, Missouri and serves as the Vice President of the Lewis County Nursing Home Board of Directors.
Lisa Neisen
Administrative Director, Corporate Communications
Lisa Neisen has spent over 30 years working in the healthcare industry. She joined Blessing Hospital in 1991 working as an MRI Coordinator and served as the Radiology Office Supervisor before joining the Public Relations & Communications department as a Marketing Specialist in 1995. She was promoted to manager of the PR department in 2003, Director of the department in 2006, and Brand Strategy Director in 2017. Lisa was promoted to Administrative Director, Corporate Communications in 2022 and oversees the Marketing, Communications & Community Relations Department.
Lisa received a Bachelor of Science degree from Illinois State University with a major in Public Relations She is a member of the Public Relations Society of America and Society of Healthcare Strategy and Market Development. In addition, Lisa is the founder and leader of the Down Syndrome support group.
Lisa and her husband, Jeff, are lifelong residents of the area and have four children and one grandchild.
Christopher Solaro, MD, PhD, CPE
Chief Medical Officer
Dr. Chris Solaro has served as Chief Medical Officer for Blessing Health System since January 2022 and has practiced Emergency Medicine at Blessing Health since 2005. In addition, he is the Executive Director of Crossriver Quality Health Partners, a clinically integrated network designed to unite physicians and other providers to achieve the Quadruple Aim on a regional scale.
Dr. Solaro completed his undergraduate training in Biomedical Engineering at Northwestern University and completed an M.D. and Ph.D. in the Medical Scientist Training Program at Washington University in St. Louis. He completed his residency training at the University of Texas, Southwestern Medical Center, and is board-certified in both Internal and Emergency Medicine. He is a member of the American Medical Association, American Association for Physician Leadership and is a Certified Physician Executive.
Pamela Stuart, MSJ, CHC, CPC
Chief Compliance Officer
In Pamela Stuart’s 39-year career, she has held numerous positions with a broad background in healthcare operations and administrative functions. That background led Pamela to her current position as Chief Compliance Officer with the Blessing Health System. She has served in this role since 2010.
Pamela holds a Masters Degree in Jurisprudence of Health and Hospital Law from Seton Hall University School of Law, as well as a Certification in Healthcare Compliance (CHC) from the Health Care Compliance Association. She is a Certified Professional Coder (CPC) and holds ICD-10 Proficiency from the American Academy of Professional Coders.
Tim Tranor, DNP, MBA, RN
Chief Nursing Officer
As Chief Nursing Officer (CNO) of Blessing Health System, Tim Tranor plays a critical role in ensuring that the health system provides an exceptional, coordinated and patient-centered care experience to everyone it serves.
Dr. Tranor became Chief Nursing Officer of Blessing Health in December 2015 and has more than 20 years of leadership experience and 29 years of healthcare of healthcare experience. He previously worked in various leadership roles at Barnes Jewish Hospital including Director of Surgical Services and Director of Neurosciences.
Dr. Tranor holds a Bachelor of Science degree in nursing from the University of Cincinnati and a Master of Business Administration degree from Webster University in Saint Louis. He received Doctorate Degree in Nursing Practice from American Sentinel University. He completed the Johnson & Johnson Wharton Fellows Program for Nurse Executives.
Michelle Zech
Chief Human Resources Officer
Michelle Zech has spent over 30 years working in the healthcare industry. She began her healthcare career in Southwest Florida where she spent over half of her career working in heath care operations. Her career then took a slight turn and she found herself working in the Human Resources space. Michelle worked for two large healthcare systems in South Florida and was then recruited by AdventHealth Mid-America Region as VP of Human Resources which included 3 hospitals in the Kansas City Region and one in Wisconsin. Blessing Health then recruited her to Quincy, Illinois where she has spent the last two years as the VP/Chief Human Resources Officer. Michelle’s passion lies in leadership, career development and employee engagement.