Editors’ Note

Tara McCoy joined HSS in January 2023. In her role, she leads all aspects of HSS Florida in partnership with Dr. Douglas Padgett and drives culture and connectivity in the region in partnership with HSS in New York. McCoy serves as the leader of the HSS Florida management structure and oversees strategy and growth for the region, supported by and connected to leadership of key functions on the HSS Main Campus. McCoy joined HSS with more than 20 years of healthcare experience in the state of Florida leading both for-profit and not-for-profit hospitals and physician groups. Most recently, she oversaw the West Florida Division of GenesisCare, a global provider of oncology services. She previously served as the Market Chief Executive Officer of Community Health Systems – Bayfront Health as well as Chief Executive Officer of Tenet’s Good Samaritan Medical Center. Prior to her chief executive positions, she spent five years as the service line administrator for Tenet Healthcare’s Florida market, as administrator of physician practices and outpatient services for Cleveland Clinic Florida, and as a director of operations improvement for HCA. McCoy holds a BS degree in psychology from Tulane University and an MS in industrial engineering from the University of South Florida.

What do you consider to be the key steps in your path to leadership in healthcare?

My path in healthcare leadership started with my role as an industrial engineer. I began working in hospitals with a focus on how I could lead a team toward developing and implementing processes that could improve both the patient experience and the efficiency of operations. It involved significant team building, and this skill served me well in all future positions.

Since that time, I have worked in the healthcare industry with experience leading both for-profit and not-for-profit hospitals and physician groups. I’ve had the opportunity to immerse myself in the inner workings of many different organizations, seeing what worked well and where there was opportunity for improvement. With each new role, I learned the organization’s unique culture. It showed me different examples of leadership styles and team dynamics. I have had the opportunity to work with some truly amazing mentors who helped me to succeed and led me to where I am today.

What are your priorities for leading HSS Florida and how will you focus your efforts?

HSS Florida has already made world-class musculoskeletal care more accessible and convenient with the opening of the center in West Palm Beach. Looking ahead, I will be focusing on continued growth, allowing us to serve even more patients in our community. We will be adding talented new physicians to the team in the coming months and years, and working through different growth-oriented strategies that enable us to generate even more value for our patients and HSS as a whole.

In early January, we officially commenced our partnership with NCH Healthcare System in Naples, Florida. Over the course of the year, we will continue to focus on laying the groundwork for that partnership. To offer several near-term highlights, we will be focusing on recruiting medical staff to build out a world-class physician team and supporting NCH in the facility planning process for the HSS-NCH Musculoskeletal Center, which will open in 2025.

I look forward to expanding the reach and impact of HSS across Florida by utilizing my healthcare knowledge and Florida community experiences to continue building on the great work that has already begun.

Will you discuss HSS’ operations in Florida and where you see opportunities to expand the reach and impact of HSS across the state?

HSS’ current operations in Florida are headquartered in West Palm Beach on the state’s southeastern coast. As I mentioned above, we will be building a second HSS hub in Naples on the southwestern coast of Florida.

To briefly highlight our current operations on the east coast of Florida, HSS Palm Beach provides top-quality, comprehensive musculoskeletal services to patients throughout the state, including imaging, physical therapy and sports performance, inpatient orthopedic care, and ambulatory surgery. We currently have thirteen physicians at this location and an additional satellite office in Wellington, Florida that provides convenient access to outpatient orthopedic care. We have a massive opportunity to continue to grow our foothold on the state’s east coast, and we will continue to elevate and build upon our West Palm hub in the years ahead.

Our partnership with NCH presents a massive opportunity for HSS to extend its reach and impact to the west coast of Florida, establishing a musculoskeletal center to bring much-needed care to more patients throughout the state. In the years to come, we will continue to grow in new ways, and in new places – leveraging HSS’ knowledge to establish new academic and clinical collaborations and partnering with other organizations in new markets to extend our reach and impact in a way that makes sense for HSS.

How will you ensure HSS is providing the same high standard of patient care, experience and value across your fast-growing presence in Florida?

At HSS Florida, our patients can expect to receive the same high levels of care that they would receive on the main campus in New York City. We achieve this in several ways. The most important is through the individuals who work here, both on the clinical and non-clinical sides. We ensure that every person who is hired at HSS Florida upholds the same values and standards that make our organization so special.

Staff are given the same thorough training at all of our locations, and we ensure that protocols and best practices are always carried through. We also have a consistent set of quality metrics that are constantly measured and analyzed.

Finally, we put a strong focus on consistency of culture across all HSS locations because that is one of the biggest keys to our success. All HSS staff, regardless of role or location, should feel empowered to carry out their job function as a leader.

Our data shows that these measures are working. Quality and patient experience scores in West Palm Beach are on par with those in New York. And, consistent with the main campus, HSS Florida maintains a Net Promotor Score of 94, unheard of in any industry, let alone healthcare.

Have you seen a change in the opportunities for women to lead in the industry and what advice do you offer to aspiring leaders?

I have seen a shift over my 20+ years in the industry with more females in healthcare leadership positions. It has been exciting to be a part of this change. My biggest piece of advice is to seize any and all opportunities that come your way, no matter how big or small they might seem. Don’t be afraid to take risks and make bold moves if there is something you strongly believe in. Finally, find several mentors who provide different perspectives to learn and listen from. Develop your own leadership style that is authentic to you.