ST. LOUIS, MO – Sr. Mary Noel Brown, CSA, has been named president/chair of SSM Health Ministries (SSMHM), the sponsoring body responsible for preserving SSM Health’s Roman Catholic identity and serving as liaison to the Vatican. Sr. Brown succeeds Fr. Michael Rozier, SJ, PhD, who recently completed his term. Fr. Rozier will continue to serve on SSMHM as well as the SSM Health Board of Directors.
SSM Health also has announced the selection of two new members of SSMHM who will also serve on the SSM Health Board: Fr. Thomas Nairn, OFM, PhD, and Therese B. Pandl, RN, MN, MBA, FACHE. In addition, Peter Dolan has been appointed to the SSM Health Board.
Sr. Brown first joined SSMHM and the SSM Health Board in 2018. Over her nearly 50-year career, Sr. Brown has served in various health care roles, including mission officer and vice president of nursing. She currently serves as the director of associate relationship for the Congregation of Sisters of St. Agnes (CSA) in Fond du Lac, WI. In her prior role as the executive leader of sponsorship for CSA, she helped guide the process to transfer the congregation’s health ministries to SSM Health. She has served on numerous non-profit boards, including Friends of Women in Recovery, where she still serves as a spiritual counselor. She also facilitates a spirituality group for women.
“Sr. Mary Noel brings a remarkable depth and breadth of wisdom and leadership experience to this important role,” said Laura S. Kaiser, FACHE, president/chief executive officer of SSM Health. “Her insight will help us further our Mission of providing exceptional health care services to the communities we are privileged to serve.”
Fr. Nairn served as provincial minister of the Sacred Heart Province of Franciscans from 2017 to 2023. Prior to that, he served nine years as the senior director of ethics and theology at the Catholic Health Association of the United States. He also taught for 28 years at the Catholic Theological Union at Chicago, becoming the Erica and Harry John Professor of Catholic Theological Ethics. During that time, he also provided medical ethics consulting to several Chicago hospitals. Fr. Nairn entered the Franciscan Order in 1968 and was ordained in 1975.
Ms. Pandl is a retired health care executive with more than 35 years of progressive leadership in large, complex health care systems. She served as president and CEO for Hospital Sisters Health System Eastern Wisconsin Division as well as HSHS St. Vincent Hospital and St. Mary’s Medical Center. Prior to that, she served as executive vice president and chief operating officer for Ascension Columbia St. Mary’s. She also served as Board Chair of the Wisconsin Hospital Association and was awarded an Honorary Doctor of Medicine Degree from the Medical College of Wisconsin last May.
Mr. Dolan co-founded Plaza Advisory Group in 1985 in St. Louis and, with his partners, has built it into a premier wealth advisory firm that oversees more than $1 billion in client assets. He is the co-author of the book, The Integrated Investor: The Art and Science of Financial Achievement. Dolan previously served as president for the St. Louis Chapter of the International Association for Financial Planning and as a member of the Board of Trustees of Regis University. In 2022, he began serving on the Finance and Investment Committee of the SSM Health Board.
“We welcome Fr. Thomas, Therese, and Peter and the vast experience they each bring to our work at SSM Health,” said Samuel L. Ross, MD, MS, chair of the SSM Health Board. “I am proud to partner with them as we seek to realize the organization’s Vision of peace, hope and health for every person, family and community, especially those most in need.”
About SSM Health
SSM Health is a Catholic, not-for-profit, fully integrated health system dedicated to advancing innovative, sustainable, and compassionate care for patients and communities throughout the Midwest and beyond. The organization’s 40,000 team members and 12,800 providers are committed to fulfilling SSM Health’s Mission: “Through our exceptional health care services, we reveal the healing presence of God.”
With care delivery sites in Illinois, Missouri, Oklahoma and Wisconsin, SSM Health includes hospitals, physician offices, outpatient and virtual care services, senior care facilities, comprehensive home care and hospice services, a fully transparent pharmacy benefit company, a health insurance company and an accountable care organization. It is one of the largest employers in every community it serves. For more information, visit ssmhealth.com or find us on Facebook and LinkedIn.