OLEAN, N.Y. — The Upper Allegheny Health System Board of Directors has elected Dr. Muhammed Javed as chairman — he steps into the role succeeding Jeff Belt, who held the position since 2019.
The board also approved the appointment of Richard Esch, president of the University of Pittsburgh at Bradford, Pa., as a member.
Upper Allegheny Health System, parent company Olean General Hospital and Bradford Regional Medical Center, is a member of Kaleida Health.
Javed is a board-certified nephrologist practicing in both Olean and Bradford for 28 years. He serves as the medical director for two dialysis units — DaVita Healthcare in Bradford and Marie Lorenz Dialysis Unit in Olean. He earned his medical degree from Ross University School of Medicine and completed his nephrology fellowship at SUNY Downstate.
Javed also has served on the board of directors for the YMCA of the Twin Tiers and Olean General Hospital Foundation. He is a member on the Kaleida Health Board of Directors and the Board of Trustees for the Healthcare Association of New York State Inc.
“Healthcare has been in a constant change,” Javed said. “Adapting to these changes in order to maintain access and services is challenging. The UAHS board is committed to providing quality access and service in our region.”
He said his role as chairman is to support Dr. Jill Owens as UAHS president, “and I am confident in Dr. Owens’ leadership that the ongoing work will continue to make improvements in providing access and quality services for our communities.”
It was noted that this is the first time since the inception of UAHS that key leadership roles are filled by clinical providers.
“Navigating and understanding the healthcare industry has always been demanding, but since the pandemic there have been added challenges that every healthcare provider, network, or system are currently facing,” Owens said. “This past year we’ve faced these struggles head-on to build a stronger more sustainable healthcare system for our region.”
She said she is “excited to work with Dr. Javed,” a fellow physician, in his new role.
“As physicians we understand the ins and outs of the healthcare business and will be able to navigate these obstacles to improve services and quality while creating a financially stable healthcare system for our region serving a population over 140,000 people,” Owens said.
Earlier this month, Owens detailed how the two Upper Allegheny hospitals have seen operating losses of tens of millions of dollars since 2017 — with losses greatly impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. The Upper Allegheny president said she sees the beginning of a turnaround in the continued process of securing grants and other financial supports tabbed for rural healthcare facilities along with improved contract terms and insurance reimbursement rates, as well as regaining revenues from patients’ visits and procedures through an increased group of physicians.
Regarding Belt’s service as board chairman, UAHS said in a news release it is “very thankful for (Belt’s) service and commitment to create better healthcare for the Bradford, Olean and surrounding communities.”
Belt, president, director and founder of SolEpoxy Inc. in Olean, was first elected to the board in 2014.
