UR Medicine Home Care Names Michelle Dahlkemper as CEO
(Webster, NY – November 9, 2021) Michelle Dahlkemper will be the new President and CEO of UR Medicine Home Care (URMHC). Dahlkemper is currently serving as the President and Chief Executive Officer for Penn Medicine Home Health Lancaster General Health (PMHH Lancaster General Health). She will begin leading the $60 million home care agency on December 13, 2021.
“Home care plays a rapidly expanding role in our health system and nationally, providing valuable services that help patients to improve or maintain their health as comfortably and conveniently as possible,” said Steven I. Goldstein, senior vice president of the University of Rochester Medical Center who oversees URMHC, and also serves as president and CEO of Strong Memorial and Highland hospitals in Rochester. “We are proud that UR Medicine Home Care has established itself as our region’s leading provider of these services, with a national reputation for innovation and excellence. As our new CEO, Michelle Dahlkemper will bring the professional experience and leadership vision to continue the organization’s growth and success.”
An executive leader in home care and hospice for more than 11 years, Dahlkemper has more than 20 years of leadership experience in post-acute healthcare, including palliative care and chronic illness management.
Dahlkemper graduated from San Diego State University with a Bachelor of Science in Nursing, later receiving her MBA from the Eller College of Management, at the University of Arizona. She is completing her certification in Healthcare Innovation from the Perelman School of Medicine, at the University of Pennsylvania and completed a fellowship in Healthcare Leadership from the California Healthcare Foundation in conjunction with the University of California San Francisco Healthforce Center. Prior to joining Penn Medicine, Dahlkemper was Chief Operating Officer (COO) at VNA Health, Santa Barbara, CA. She was the COO of the Hospice of Santa Cruz County, Scotts Valley, CA. Dahlkemper also served as the Regional Administrator for Hospice and Advanced Illness Management, at Sutter Health in San Francisco, CA. She is a fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives (FACHE).
As CEO of PMHH Lancaster General Health, Dahlkemper helped the organization to improve its financial performance while championing patient experience improvement. She also collaborated in the development and launch of innovative care delivery programs with clinical service lines and population health including Telemonitoring Virtual Care Management, Breathe Better Together and Hospital at Home. Dahlkemper also led the implementation of EPIC Electronic Medical Record as well as spearheading the agency’s Lean Management processes.
Dahlkemper said she is excited to start this new chapter of her career and will begin by learning as much as she can about the agency. “I have worked in home care and hospice for many years,” she explained, “and UR Medicine Home Care has an outstanding reputation. I am excited to meet with staff and learn how they contribute to the agency’s mission.”
Dahlkemper will succeed Jane Shukitis, URMHC’s previous President and CEO, who is retiring December 31, 2021.
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About UR Medicine Home Care
UR Medicine Home Care encompasses UR Medicine’s not-for-profit, Medicare-certified home health care agencies, licensed home care agencies, and hospice programs. Licensed by the State of New York, its affiliates serve patients in Monroe, Livingston, Ontario, Wayne, Wyoming, Seneca and Yates counties, and when taken together is one of the largest full-service home health systems in the nation. Services include nursing, physical, occupational and speech therapies, pediatric and perinatal services, assistance with daily activities (home health aide services), Meals On Wheels, Hospice (in homes and facilities), Nurse-Family Partnership, Assistive Technology, Health Home care management, and Telehealth. For more information, call 585.787.2233 or visit homecare.urmc.edu
2021 Golf Tournament
Thursday, July 8, 2021
The 2021 URMHC Golf Tournament will be held on Monday, July 26, 2021 at Irondequoit Country Club. Tee times: 10:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m. For more information and to register, go to the 2021 UR Medicine Home Care Golf Tournament site.
UR Medicine Home Care CEO Jane Shukitis to Step Down In December 2021
Wednesday, April 14, 2021
Jane Shukitis, RN, BSN, MPA, President and CEO of UR Medicine Home Care, will retire in December 2021 after seven years leading the agency. Shukitis announced her plans to the board and staff last week.
"It has been an honor to lead UR Medicine Home Care over the last seven years," Shukitis said. "I am so proud of the work we do to provide excellent care to people in their homes, and I am forever grateful for the support and guidance from my colleagues and our Board of Directors."
"This has been a very difficult decision for me. But as I am turning 66 this year, my husband and I have decided it is time to seek other life adventures while we are still young enough to enjoy them. With the benefit of an early announcement, I will be able to work with the Board toward a seamless transition to a new CEO."
Shukitis earned her Bachelor of Science in Nursing at the Roberts Wesleyan College and her Master's in Public Administration, Health Care Concentration, from SUNY Brockport. She brought more than 30 years of health care leadership experience with her when she joined UR Medicine Home Care as President and CEO in January 2015.
During her tenure, Jane led the operational redesign and financial turnaround efforts with the agency. Key components of her work include:
- Strengthening the alignment with UR Medicine through patient centered/integrated care strategies and collaborations to improve quality and increase growth.
- Creating new service lines: Pediatric and Perinatal Services, Home Infusion and Assistive Technology, while eliminating programs that were under-utilized and not financially viable.
- Restructuring and rightsizing the organization to reduce overhead and administrative costs, while re-balancing the workforce to increase clinical field staffing that opened capacity for growth.
- Using Lean process improvement to eliminate waste and improve workflows and efficiencies in revenue cycle, administrative and clinical operations.
- Improving revenues through better case mix capture and volume growth.
- Redesigning the clinical operations model to achieve improved patient outcomes and high star ratings from the Centers of Medicare and Medicaid.
"Jane has been a tireless champion for UR Medicine Home Care and the patients we serve," says Hazel Robertshaw, Chair of the UR Medicine Home Care Board of Directors. "While we are sad she is leaving, we appreciate the time she is giving us to find a successor. We look forward to being able to celebrate her many contributions and professional accomplishments in the time she remains with us. Her departure leaves a void that will be hard to fill."
Steven I. Goldstein, president and CEO of Strong Memorial and Highland hospitals in Rochester, and senior vice president of the University of Rochester Medical Center, also praised Shukitis' leadership.
"During Jane's tenure as CEO, UR Medicine Home Care has improved both as a leading home care agency in the region and as a valuable part of the UR Medicine system, providing high-quality and compassionate home care services to families throughout the Finger Lakes region," Goldstein said. "We thank Jane for her service and look forward to working with the Board of Directors in the months ahead to find a new CEO who will build upon her successes and continue leading UR Medicine Home Care in a positive direction."
In an email note to agency employees, Shukitis credited them for the achievements made during her tenure. "I truly love this organization and am very proud of the great work we do. We have faced many difficult challenges together, and have had many great successes during my seven years as CEO."