GASKILL-HAMES
MICHELLE GASKILL-HAMES NAMED PRESIDENT OF KAISER PERMANENTE SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA AND HAWAII
Michelle Gaskill-Hames, BSN, MHA, has been named as regional president of Kaiser Permanente Southern California and Hawaii.
Gaskill-Hames will lead the health care organization’s focus on providing integrated, high-quality health care and coverage in partnership with the executive medical director for the Southern California Permanente Medical Group. Kaiser Permanente currently provides care and coverage for nearly 5.2 million members in Southern California and Hawaii across 17 hospitals and more than 200 ambulatory facilities.
Gaskill-Hames served as interim president since April 2023 following the retirement of Julie Miller-Phipps. Previously, she served as the chief operating officer and chief strategy, growth and experience officer for Southern California and Hawaii.
“Michelle uses her deep operational knowledge and strategic focus to ensure that our members consistently receive high-quality care and service at every touchpoint,” said Janet Liang, executive vice president, group president and chief operating officer, care delivery, for Kaiser Foundation Health Plan, Inc. and Hospitals. “She keeps our members’ needs at the center of all of that she does.”
Gaskill-Hames began her career at the bedside as a neonatal intensive care registered nurse. In the 15 years prior to joining Kaiser Permanente, she delivered leadership vision, drove cultural transformation, and executed successful outcomes at several health systems including Northwestern Memorial HealthCare, Michael Reese Hospital and Medical Center, and Advocate Health Care, where she served as president of Advocate Trinity Hospital. Gaskill-Hames also spent 8 years in strategic planning and operations improvement consulting in the health care practices at both Huron Consulting and PricewaterhouseCoopers.
She joined Kaiser Permanente in 2016 and served in a progression of leadership roles in Northern California before moving to Southern California in 2022. At Kaiser Permanente Northern California, she served as senior vice president and area manager for both Redwood City and Greater Southern Alameda, interim regional chief nurse executive, and senior vice president of hospital and health plan operations.
Gaskill-Hames currently serves on several professional and community boards of directors, including the California Hospital Association executive board, the Integrated Healthcare Association executive board, the boards of the national Healthcare Standards Institute, and the Los Angeles Chamber of Commerce.
Gaskill-Hames holds a master’s degree in health services administration and a bachelor’s degree in nursing from the University of Michigan. She also has a project management certification from the Harvard School of Public Health.
