The executive leadership of the Osteopathic Heritage Foundations will transition at the end of the year as Richard (Rick) Vincent, 69, retires from his long time position as President and CEO of the Foundations and affiliate organizations.
“The Boards have planned for the transition with the adoption of a management succession plan to be rolled out over the next couple of months with an enduring commitment to our mission and funding priorities,” said Vincent. “The legacy of the Foundations has been to support access to osteopathic medical care in Ohio and beyond as well as funding agencies serving the public in a way that is consistent with the holistic philosophy of osteopathic medicine.”
Vincent’s advocacy for osteopathic medicine began in 1971 when he accepted an entry level job at Doctors Hospital after his four year stint as a medic in the U.S. Air Force. Completing his undergraduate and graduate degrees while employed full time at Doctors, he never seriously considered leaving Doctors for other opportunities.
“I became committed to the people with and for whom I worked and the institution that embodied the philosophy of osteopathic medicine,” said Vincent.
Vincent held a number of management positions in the Doctors’ system, providing him with broad operational and administrative experience, and in 1988 he was named President and CEO of the Doctors Hospital health system. Within a few years he was also appointed the chief executive of the Hospital’s supporting Doctors Hospital Foundation, now the Osteopathic Heritage Foundations. During his tenure, among other achievements, the Hospital system became one of the nation’s largest and most respected training sites for graduate osteopathic physicians.
In 1998 Vincent directed the asset sale of Doctors Hospital (North and West) and Doctors Hospital of Nelsonville to OhioHealth. This positioned the Foundations to provide direct philanthropic support to community health and quality of life agencies and concentrated enhancement of the osteopathic medical education continuum. A 2011 transformational gift of $105 million to Ohio University’s Heritage College of Osteopathic Medicine helped support enrichment of pre-doctoral education, medical research and the development of branch campus locations in Dublin and Cleveland. The total enrollment of the medical school is 925 and growing, with an objective that over 65% of the graduates will become primary care physicians and a similar percentage will remain in the state to serve the citizens of Ohio. Significant support is also provided to central Ohio post-graduate medical education programs with osteopathic recognition. Since the first direct philanthropic investments in 1999, the Osteopathic Heritage Foundation and Osteopathic Heritage Foundation of Nelsonville have approved nearly $240 million in grant funding for over 1,000 agencies.
“The Foundation Boards will take action over the next few months formalizing the succession plan to assure the lasting legacy of the Foundations. Familiarity, experience and commitment to the mission and vision are important characteristics for the staff and leadership given our well defined priorities.” said Vincent.