2005 Press Releases
Rome Memorial Hospital welcomes new Chief Medical Officer ROME – Marybeth McCall, M.D., a board certified internist with a master’s degree in medical management, has joined Rome Memorial Hospital as its chief medical officer, announced Chief Executive Officer Darlene Burns, M.S., R.N. As a member of the hospital’s administrative team, Dr. McCall serves as a liaison between the medical staff and hospital administration. The Medical Staff Office supports physician recruitment efforts, manages the credentialing process, and fosters ongoing performance improvement and physician development. “As a result of her extensive training and experience, Dr. McCall understands the total quality management process and possesses the knowledge and interpersonal skills to foster a culture of discovery and critical thinking,” Mrs. Burns said. “Her efforts will help strengthen the partnership between the hospital and our physicians as we work together toward the common goal of providing cost-effective, high quality, evidenced-based medical care.” A lifelong learner, Dr. McCall had her first taste of medicine when she worked in a hospital lab during her undergraduate years at Manhattan College, New York City, where she graduated magna cum laude in 1974 with a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering. Engineering, she said, was surprisingly a good foundation for understanding medicine and human psychology. After earning her medical degree from Georgetown University in 1978, Dr. McCall completed her residency in internal medicine at University Health Science Center in Pittsburgh, Pa. She was appointed a major in the U.S. Air Force and served as a staff physician at Offutt Air Force Base in Omaha, Neb. She completed a research year in allergy and immunology at Creighton University in Omaha. “It was in Omaha that I learned about Griffiss Air Force Base and the beauty of Upstate New York from friends who had been stationed in Rome,” Dr. McCall said. In 1985, she and her husband Frank Dubeck, M.D., were recruited to the Mohawk Valley. After four years in private practice, Dr. McCall was named associate medical director at the Masonic Home in Utica and achieved added qualifications in geriatrics. In 1995, Dr. McCall accepted a new challenge as senior vice president/medical director of Faxton-St. Luke’s Healthcare, Utica, where she helped to facilitate the merger of the medical staffs of the two facilities as they consolidated into one healthcare system. During her tenure there, she earned her master’s degree in medical management from Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, Pa. “In medical school, physicians typically do not learn the administrative side of medicine,” Dr. McCall said. “The Carnegie program teaches physician executives to critically evaluate quality and develops other management skills involving finance, regulatory affairs, human resources, strategic planning and leadership development.” For the last three years, Dr. McCall utilized her management skills as the chief medical officer at Crouse Hospital, Syracuse, where she was a member of the senior management team overseeing the hospital’s turnaround that helped it emerge from bankruptcy. “The key lesson that I learned from that experience is that you look for value in every decision. It is important that you make a commitment that everyone is engaged in conserving resources and using them wisely. Healthcare is a low margin business and we can’t afford to waste. Everyone can find ways to save in big and small ways. The more we save, the more resources we have to improve care through investments in people, advanced technology and new services.” When Dr. McCall was contacted by Rome Memorial Hospital to consider the position as chief medical officer, she said it was time to return to the Mohawk Valley where she still calls home. With her life split between working in Syracuse, teaching at SUNYIT and living in Utica, she said she felt like she was from “Uticuse.” “Rome has demonstrated both fiscal responsibility and a deep sense of caring and commitment to its community,” Dr. McCall said. “With each new chapter in my career, I look for an opportunity to be part of a team environment that enables me to contribute to the greater good.” She said her core objectives are to provide continued assistance to the medical staff through recruitment and leadership development to ensure delivery of essential services to the community; provide accurate and concise quality of care information to the physicians to further the practice of evidence-based medicine; and to assist with the development of information technology tools which provide timely, accurate information to assist in decision-making. | 