GRUNDY CENTER – As UnityPoint Health Waterloo begins operation of the Marshalltown Hospital, Grundy County Memorial Hospital CEO Jennifer Havens will serve the new affiliate as head of operations in addition to her leadership of GCMH.

The former Central Iowa Healthcare of Marshalltown becomes UnityPoint Health Marshalltown, an affiliate of UnityPoint Health Waterloo, on May 1. Havens will serve as interim president until new hospital president Dustin Wright begins work in mid-May. Havens will then begin her shared role as CEO of Grundy County Memorial Hospital (GCMH) and vice president of operations for UnityPoint Health Marshalltown.

Havens has served in senior leadership with the Grundy County Memorial Hospital for nine years. She joined the hospital as Chief Clinical Officer/Director of Nursing in 2008 and has been its CEO since 2015. She is a registered nurse, and has a Master’s degree in Health Care Administration from Des Moines University. Dustin Wright has served as the CEO of Community Memorial Hospital in Sumner, also a UnityPoint Health Waterloo affiliate.

“I look forward to working for the Marshalltown hospital in order for it to best meet the health care needs of its communities as an affiliate of UnityPoint Health,” Havens remarks. “It’s a chance to impact health care delivery in Marshall and surrounding counties, and I’m pleased the GCMH board and leadership team are supportive of the opportunity for me to serve UnityPoint Health Marshalltown.”

“This is a great opportunity for GCMH to share Jennifer’s talents with the newest hospital in the health system,” remarks Mary Schmidt, president of the GCMH board of commissioners. “We’ve experienced firsthand the leadership Jennifer demonstrates, and the positive changes she’s made during her past nine years of clinical leadership.”

At GCMH, Havens has responsibility for the overall management of the hospital, and oversight of all clinical and ancillary service areas within GCMH. She has led improvement in many patient safety and satisfaction initiatives across the organization. Grundy County Memorial Hospital has marked eight consecutive years of ranking among the nation’s best for Patient Satisfaction in the Emergency Department.

UnityPoint Health Marshalltown is a not-for-profit community healthcare provider in Marshall County. UnityPoint Health Marshalltown operates a 49-bed, acute care hospital, four primary care medical clinics located in Marshalltown, Conrad, State Center and Tama-Toledo, and a state-of-the-art outpatient center. The outpatient center includes an award winning wound healing center, as well as four surgical suites, imaging lab, urgent care, and therapy services.

UnityPoint Health Waterloo includes Allen Hospital, a 204-bed, non-profit community hospital, two critical access hospitals, an outpatient community mental health center, a nursing and allied health college and 25 family practice and specialty clinics serving the Cedar Valley.

Grundy County Memorial Hospital has been affiliated with Allen Hospital and the UnityPoint Health system for the past seventeen years.