Kristene Grayem named Chief Population Health Officer and Executive Director of Akron Children’s Health Collaborative

01-31-2022 (Akron, Ohio )

Kristene Grayem, MSN, APRN, RN-BC, was recently named chief population health officer and executive director of the Akron Children’s Health Collaborative.

In this role, Grayem will be responsible for the overall operational and financial performance of Akron Children’s Health Collaborative and the hospital’s value-based care programs. The Health Collaborative is responsible for managing the health care services of approximately 96,000 children and teenagers in 13 counties in northeast Ohio.

Grayem has served as the interim executive director of Akron Children’s Health Collaborative since January 2021 and played a critical role in launching Akron Children’s pediatric accountable care organization and in implementing the hospital’s Medicaid value-based care strategy.

“I’m very pleased to welcome Kris into her new role,” said Chris Gessner, Akron Children’s President and CEO. “Kris has been an authentic and innovative leader who has pioneered the population health mindset at Akron Children’s and built the core competencies of care management, both within and outside of the walls of the hospital, that are critical to our success in the world of prepaid health care.”

During her more than 30-year career at Akron Children’s, Grayem has held many leadership positions including clinical nurse specialist in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit; manager for developmental and behavioral pediatrics; manager for the NeuroDevelopmental Science Center;  associate director for clinical systems and PI; director of ambulatory clinical systems, nursing and quality; and vice president for population health.