Executive Bios

Gerald "J.P." Gallagher
President and Chief Executive Officer

Gerald “J.P.” Gallagher assumed the role of NorthShore President and Chief Executive Officer in November 2017. In his previous role as Chief Operating Officer, Gallagher was responsible for overall system operations, clinical quality results and financial performance. During his tenure the system has combined strong operating performance with significant improvements in quality and patient safety, the use of technology to enhance patient engagement and significant capital improvements across its campuses.

Prior to becoming COO, Mr. Gallagher served as President of Evanston Hospital, the flagship teaching hospital for the system.  Evanston Hospital has been recognized as a Top 100 Hospital and Top 15 Major Teaching Hospital by Truven Analytics for eighteen years – more than any other health care system in the nation.   Mr. Gallagher was recognized by Modern Healthcare magazine as one of the nation’s “Up and Comers” in 2010.

Before joining NorthShore, Mr. Gallagher served in a variety of hospital leadership roles with Advocate Health Care at its Christ Medical Center campus.  He also completed his Administrative Fellowship at Advocate.  Mr. Gallagher started his health care career as an Analyst at The Lewin Group, a health care consulting firm in Washington, DC.

Mr. Gallagher received his undergraduate degree from Princeton University and received his MBA from The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania on a scholarship from the Kaiser Family Foundation.  He is a fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives, a member of the Young Presidents Organization and serves on the Board of Advisors for Catholic Charities of Chicago.

Joseph Golbus, MD
President, NorthShore Medical Group

Dr. Joseph Golbus is President and CEO of the 900-plus physician, multispecialty group practice. He graduated from the University of Illinois summa cum laude and received his MD from the same institution. This was followed by residency training in internal medicine at Northwestern University's Feinberg School of Medicine at Evanston Hospital, and fellowship training in rheumatology at the University of Michigan Hospitals and the Rackham Arthritis Research Unit. Dr. Golbus has received his MBA from Northwestern University's Kellogg Graduate School of Management. In addition to his full-time responsibilities running the NorthShore Medical Group, Dr. Golbus remains a practicing physician and has received numerous awards and honors, including the National Arthritis Foundation Leadership Award, and has been consistently named as one of America's "Top Doctors." 

Sean O'Grady
Chief Operating Officer

Sean O’Grady serves as Chief Operating Officer, playing a critical role in helping NorthShore realize its growth, financial and engagement objectives as it expands into a more regional health system. He previously served as Chief Clinical Operations Officer and continues to lead NorthShore Hospitals, Medical Group operations, Nursing, Home Health and Hospice, and Health Information Technology. O'Grady began his NorthShore career with the Medical Group in 2007 as Vice President, Specialty Practices. As President of Glenbrook Hospital, he was responsible for operations, management, strategic planning and program development. Prior to joining NorthShore, O'Grady worked at the Shirley Ryan Ability Lab as Vice President, Operations, and at Barnes-Jewish Hospital and BJC Health System in St. Louis in various administrative positions. O'Grady completed The Jewish Hospital of St. Louis fellowship in 1994. He earned his bachelor's degree from Bradley University and his master's in Hospital and Health Administration from The University of Iowa.

Kristen Murtos
Chief Administrative & Strategy Officer

Kristen Murtos holds the position of Chief Administrative & Strategy Officer, leading NorthShore’s strategy and business development initiatives. She previously served as President of NorthShore Skokie Hospital. In her new role, Murtos also oversees a wide range of critical corporate functions Business Services and Revenue Cycle, Managed Care Contracting, Legal and Audit and Compliance and Marketing and Corporate Communications. Murtos joined NorthShore in 1998 as Vice President of the Medical Group. As President of Skokie Hospital, she was responsible for the hospital's operations, management, strategic planning and program development. Murtos has a bachelor's degree from the University of Illinois and earned master's degrees in Business Administration and Public Policy from the University of Chicago.

Gabrielle Cummings
President, Highland Park Hospital

Gabrielle Cummings joined NorthShore as an Administrative Fellow in 2002. In addition to her current role, Cummings has administrative oversight for several key NorthShore operations including the GI lab, laboratory services and cardiology. Prior to her appointment at Highland Park Hospital, Cummings served in senior leadership roles at both Evanston and Glenbrook Hospitals. Cummings has a bachelor’s degree in healthcare management from Florida A&M University and earned her master’s in health administration from the University of Minnesota with a concentration in strategic management. She also is a Fellow in the American College of Healthcare Executives.

Anthony Guaccio
President and CEO, Swedish Hospital

Anthony Guaccio first joined the executive staff of Swedish Hospital in 1996. During his tenure as Chief Operating Officer, and now, as President and CEO, Swedish has evolved into the largest, comprehensive community hospital on Chicago's North Side with a well-deserved reputation for technological and teaching excellence, dedication to the community, and innovative, compassionate care.

Guaccio is an accomplished senior-level hospital executive with 30 years of proven innovative healthcare management experience. In addition to his Swedish Hospital responsibilities, he is a Board Member of Upper Midwest Vizient, and Chairman of the Board of Captis—a $3 billion, 200-hospital group purchasing organization. Guaccio has a bachelor's degree in business administration and management from Eastern Illinois University and earned an MBA from North Park University.

Jesse Peterson Hall
President, Glenbrook Hospital

Jesse Peterson Hall joined NorthShore in 2002 as Senior Vice President of Evanston Hospital. Prior to his current leadership role at Glenbrook Hospital, he served as President of Highland Park Hospital. Hall graduated from the Western Australian Institute of Technology with a bachelor's degree in applied science. He earned his MBA from the University of Chicago Graduate School of Business. Prior to joining NorthShore, Hall served in administrative roles at Geisinger Health System in Danville, Pennsylvania, and Memorial Health Services in Long Beach, California.

David N. Rahija
President, Skokie Hospital 

In addition to serving as President of NorthShore Skokie Hospital, David Rahija provides oversight of NorthShore Orthopaedic Institute and post-acute services. Rahija joined NorthShore in 2009 as Vice President of Glenbrook Hospital. He received his bachelor’s degree in exercise science and earned a master’s degree in physical therapy from Saint Louis University. Later, Rahija earned an MBA with a concentration in healthcare management from Kellstadt Graduate School of Business at DePaul University.

Stephen Scogna
President and CEO, Northwest Community Healthcare 

Stephen Scogna first joined Northwest Community Healthcare (NCH) in 2011 as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer. He became CEO and President in 2013, responsible for advancing the organization’s mission, vision and strategic priorities while overseeing all of NCH’s inpatient and outpatient services.

A senior healthcare executive for 30 years, Scogna has held executive leadership roles in both system and hospital settings. He also has served in several leadership positions with the Illinois Health and Hospital Association. Scogna earned a bachelor of science degree in accounting from Villanova University and is a Certified Public Accountant.

Douglas M. Silverstein
President, Evanston Hospital 

Douglas Silverstein has been with NorthShore since 1992. Currently, he serves as President of Evanston Hospital, where he is responsible for the operations, management, strategic planning and program development. Silverstein has a bachelor's degree from Northwestern University and a master's degree in Health Services Administration from the University of Michigan.

Shivani Bautista
General Counsel

Shivani Bautista joined NorthShore as General Counsel in 2018. She is responsible for providing legal expertise on a range of matters impacting the organization, as well as developing and guiding business opportunities in support of NorthShore’s growth strategy. Before joining NorthShore, Bautista served as in-house counsel for United Airlines, Inc. with responsibility for all legal matters across Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Asia and Pacific regions. Previously, Bautista practiced in the litigation group at Winston & Strawn LLP. Bautista earned her Juris Doctor degree from Georgetown University Law Center and her Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from the University of Chicago. 

Michael S. Caplan, MD
Chief Scientific Officer, NorthShore Research Institute

Dr. Michael Caplan functions as lead corporate executive for research development and administration as well as principal day-to-day administrator of the NorthShore-University of Chicago research partnership. Dr. Caplan also serves as Chairman of the Department of Pediatrics.

Dr. Caplan graduated with honors from the University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine. At Children's Memorial Hospital in Chicago, Dr. Caplan completed residency training in pediatrics followed by a fellowship in neonatal-perinatal medicine. In addition to his administrative duties, Dr. Caplan remains a practicing neonatologist and a Clinical Professor of Pediatrics at the University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine.

Dr. Caplan has received numerous awards and honors, including the National Institutes of Health Clinical Investigator Award and the March of Dimes Jonas Salk Health Services Award. Dr. Caplan has been with NorthShore for over 20 years.

Lakshmi K. Halasyamani, MD
Chief Medical Officer

Lakshmi Halasyamani, MD, joined NorthShore in 2016. As Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Halasyamani provides vital direction on clinical standards for patient care with an emphasis on improving outcomes and reducing variation. She also works directly with all Clinical Chairs to improve the patient experience and further integrate our affiliated physicians to establish a more integrated view of care across the system. Dr. Halasyamani also leads NorthShore’s initiatives to develop health equity strategies to improve patient accessibility and outcomes. She previously served as Chief Quality and Transformation Officer overseeing the organization’s quality, patient safety, and care transformation efforts. Prior to joining NorthShore, she held a range of physician executive roles. Dr. Halasyamani earned her MD with honors from Harvard Medical School and then completed her residency and chief residency in internal medicine at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston. She is certified in LEAN and is a Six Sigma black belt.

Harry Jones
Chief Compliance Officer

Harry Jones began his career at NorthShore in 1990. Prior to joining NorthShore, he spent 13 years with Ernst & Young. Jones earned a bachelor’s degree from Loyola University of Chicago and his MBA from Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management. Jones’ responsibilities include oversight of NorthShore’s corporate compliance, insurance and audit functions. He also is a certified public accountant.

Scott Kenagy
Chief Investment Officer

Scott Kenagy joined NorthShore in 2017 as Chief Investment Officer and is responsible for managing the NorthShore’s investment program, which includes the endowment fund, pension fund and defined contribution plans. Prior to joining NorthShore, Kenagy served in similar roles at Northern Trust and Grosvenor Capital Management. He has a bachelor’s degree from the University of Chicago and an MBA from Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management.

Anne Martino
Chief Marketing Officer

Anne Martino joined the NorthShore leadership team in May 2020 as Chief Marketing Officer. Her areas of responsibility include brand, clinical services and digital marketing along with corporate communications and public relations. Prior to her appointment at NorthShore, Martino served as System Vice President of Consumer Insights and Strategy at Advocate Aurora Health Care.

She has held numerous consumer marketing and communications leadership positions throughout her career, including key roles at distinguished advertising agencies Leo Burnett, FCB Global and J. Walter Thompson. Martino earned a bachelor’s degree in journalism/advertising at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She also holds a master’s degree in communications from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.

Richard Silver, MD
Chief Academic Officer

Dr. Richard Silver oversees all elements of the relationship between NorthShore and the University of Chicago as well as other area medical schools. This includes supervision of undergraduate/graduate medical education as well as academic appointments for physician faculty. As a Clinical Professor and Associate Dean for Medical Education in the Biological Sciences Division at the University of Chicago, Dr. Silver manages NorthShore’s primary academic affiliation and serves on multiple executive committees at the Pritzker School of Medicine. Since 2001, Dr. Silver also has served as Chairman of NorthShore’s Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology.

Graduating from the Honors Program in Medical Education at Northwestern University, Dr. Silver completed his OB/GYN residency at the University of Texas Health Science Center in San Antonio. Dr. Silver returned to Northwestern to complete a subspecialty fellowship in Maternal-Fetal Medicine.

Steven Smith
Chief Information Officer

Steven Smith joined NorthShore in 2000. Prior to his current role, Smith served as NorthShore’s Chief Technology Officer for more than a decade. During his tenure, NorthShore became one of the first healthcare systems in the country to achieve the HIMSS Analytics Stage 7 designation, selected as an honoree for Information Week’s Elite 100, CIO’s CIO 100 and consistently recognized as one of Hospital and Health Networks "Most Wired" hospitals. Smith has two bachelor's degrees in information systems and business management from Northeastern Illinois University.

Dianna Sparacino
Chief Human Resources Officer

As Chief Human Resources Officer, Dianna Sparacino leads the development and execution of human resources strategies to support NorthShore’s mission and vision, and in alignment with organizational priorities. Sparacino joined NorthShore in 2018, previously serving as a Vice President of Human Resources.

Prior to joining NorthShore, Sparacino was VP of Global Human Resources at Univar, a 90-year-old chemical distribution company with 9,000 employees. Earlier in her career she held variety of HR leadership roles at Molex Incorporated and Stepan Company. Sparacino earned a MBA from Northwestern University and holds a bachelor’s degree in government from the University of Notre Dame.

John Tressa
Chief Nursing Officer

John Tressa was named NorthShore Chief Nursing Officer in April 2020, bringing 37 years of clinical and leadership experience to his new role. Previously he served as Vice President of NorthShore Cardiovascular Clinical Operations, overseeing the Cardiovascular Institute and Interventional services.

Prior to joining NorthShore, Tressa served as Senior Vice President for Heart, Vascular and Trauma Services at Memorial Hermann Healthcare System in Houston, Texas. He also served in CNO, COO and CEO roles at large healthcare organizations in Houston. Tressa spent the majority of his clinical career as a flight nurse for academic medical centers including the University of Chicago Hospitals and the University of North Carolina Health System.

John earned his nursing degree at Ravenswood Hospital Medical Center School of Nursing. He also holds a bachelor of science degree from the University of St. Francis, an MBA from Olivet Nazarene University and a master’s in nursing administration from American Sentinel University.

Doug Welday
Chief Financial Officer

Doug Welday joined NorthShore in 2018 as Chief Financial Officer, overseeing all financial operations for the system’s four hospitals and medical group, including capital structure and safeguarding corporate assets. Previously, Welday served as Senior Vice President of Finance for Spectrum Health in Grand Rapids, Michigan. He also held numerous leadership positions over a 24-year career at Oakwood Healthcare System, a multi-hospital and teaching healthcare system in Dearborn, Michigan. Welday is a Certified Public Accountant and earned his Master of Business Administration from the University of Michigan and a Bachelor of Science degree in accounting from Michigan State University.

Murray T. Ancell
Executive Director, NorthShore Foundation

Murray Ancell joined NorthShore in 2007, following a career in the private sector in Europe and the United States. As Executive Director of NorthShore Foundation, Ancell is responsible for leading all philanthropic activity in support of the organization. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Zoology and Physiology from the University of East Anglia, a Postgraduate Diploma in Business Administration from the University of Surrey, a Master of Science degree in Strategic Fundraising and Philanthropy from Bay Path University, and he is a Certified Fund Raising Executive. Ancell serves as adjunct faculty in Bay Path’s Graduate School of Science and Management and as a peer reviewer on the Association for Healthcare Philanthropy Journal Advisory Council.