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| David W. Hillis, President and CEO of AdCare Hospital |
BEHAVIORAL HEALTHCARE, the official publication of the National Association of Addiction Treatment Professionals, has named David W. Hillis, FACHE, FACATA, President and CEO of AdCare Hospital, a 2009 Behavioral Healthcare Champion. “Champions have ‘come up’ through the behavioral health field, often under demanding or trying circumstances,” writes Associate Editor Lindsay Barba, BEHAVIORAL HEALTHCARE Associate Editor. “Their organizations and impacts have touched the lives of those who struggle with serious mental illness or substance addiction.”
Under the leadership of David W. Hillis, President and CEO of AdCare Hospital since 1974, AdCare has become the most comprehensive provider of alcohol and drug abuse treatment in New England. AdCare Hospital, which celebrates its 35th anniversary this year, offers a full range of medically-manged and monitored inpatient care as well as outpatient services in Massachusetts and Rhode Islandand. With over 450 employees, AdCare Hospital is a major employer in Massachusetts.
Begun in 1976 as a 10-bed unit within a medical hospital, AdCare Hospital (then Doctor’s Hospital) added beds in small increments -- 20, then 30 and a new drug treatment program. As demand for addiction services surged, David Hillis and his management team decided in 1984 to dedicate all of the beds to substance abuse treatment. Notes Mr. Hillis when interviewed by BEHAVIORAL HEALTHCARE:
“True to its heritage, AdCare specializes in addiction treatment, yet remains a licensed acute-care hospital. This unique blend of capabilities enables AdCare to deliver substance abuse care to virtually any patient, even if they are medically compromised.”
David W. Hillis, President and CEO of AdCare Hospital, is a Fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives, the nation’s premier professional society for healthcare leaders, and a longtime member of the National Association of Addiction Providers. Since 2003, Mr. Hillis has been a member of the Board of Directors of Fallon Community Health Plan and currently serves as its Chairman. In addition, Mr. Hillis has received numerous honors for his work, including the Administrator of the Year Award from the American College of Addiction Treatment Administrators, an Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters from Endicott College, and a 30-year Achievement Award from the Hospital Financial Management Organization.
