Schwartz Center Welcomes New Board Members and Elects Ruth Kilduff as Chair

BOSTON, July 12, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Schwartz Center for Compassionate Healthcare, a national non-profit leader in the movement to make compassion a vital element in every patient-caregiver interaction, announced the appointment of three highly experienced business leaders to its board of directors. Ruth Kilduff, R.N., an existing board member, was elected chair while Kerry A. Flynn, J.D. and Candace Young joined as new board members. In addition, board members Sharon McNally, chief of staff for the Connors Family Office, was elected vice chair of the board, and Joyce A. Murphy, executive vice chancellor of Commonwealth Medicine, was elected clerk.

Ruth Kilduff is a member of the senior management team at Integro Insurance Brokers and serves as chair of its U.S. Operations. She has more than 30 years of experience in the health care field, including the placement of insurance for health care clients. Prior to joining Integro, Ruth served as a managing director at Marsh as well as vice president of quality support services at Tufts Medical Center.

Her background as a registered nurse practicing in pediatric and adult intensive care, along with her experience as a business leader and risk management expert, provide unique perspective on the value of compassion in patient and caregiver relationships.

"It's an honor to represent the Schwartz Center and to be a part of its influential work," said Ms. Kilduff. "I am eager to collaborate with my fellow board members in support of the Schwartz Center's mission to help health care organizations develop an environment that fosters a culture of healing, compassion and well-being."

"We are thrilled and privileged to welcome Kerry and Candace to our board of directors and for three of our most highly respected board members to assume new leadership positions," said Executive Director Julie Rosen. "This group of nationally recognized leaders brings expertise, passion and dedication to the Schwartz Center's vision of a health care system where all patients receive compassionate care and caregivers are supported to provide it."

Kerry A. Flynn is the vice president, chief intellectual property counsel at Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc., and brings with her 25 years of experience representing biotech and pharmaceutical companies. Prior to joining Vertex, Kerry held leadership positions at several biotechnology companies in the Boston area. She has been an adjunct professor of law at Boston University and is active in numerous biotech industry organizations. In addition to her board duties, she will serve as co-chair of the Schwartz Center's annual National Compassionate Caregiver of the Year award dinner on November 15, 2016, which raises over $1 million and attracts nearly 2,000 health care executives, industry leaders, clinicians and patients to celebrate the importance of compassionate health care.

Candace Young is the owner and founder of From the Ground Up, a landscape and garden design company. Prior to her landscape design career, Candace spent 20 years in the finance and business industries, where she held several leadership positions for various public and private companies supporting both U.S. and international operations.

Learn more about Schwartz Center leadership at http://www.theschwartzcenter.org/about-/leadership/.

About the Schwartz Center for Compassionate Healthcare
Established in 1995, the Schwartz Center for Compassionate Healthcare, a leader in the movement to make compassion a vital element in every patient-caregiver interaction, was founded on the belief that greater compassion and more meaningful collaboration are fundamental to the kind of care clinicians want to deliver and patients want to receive. 

The Schwartz Center is an independent, non-profit organization, with more than 550 organizational members in the U.S., U.K. and Canada, supporting 200,000 health care professionals each year. Schwartz Center members rely on programs, education and resources to support clinician well-being, enhance the quality of care, enable better outcomes and create a more positive and rewarding experience for all members of the care team, patients and their families. The innovative Schwartz Center Rounds^® unites caregivers from a range of disciplines to share experiences, learn from each other and focus on the human dimension of medicine.

To help patients and family members acknowledge caregivers who epitomize the qualities of compassionate care, the Schwartz Center established the Honor Your Caregiver program. Through its National Compassionate Caregiver of the Year award, the Center celebrates health care professionals who display extraordinary devotion and compassion in caring for patients and families.

Visit us at theschwartzcenter.org or follow us on Facebook or Twitter.

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SOURCE The Schwartz Center for Compassionate Healthcare

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