Members of the Society for Healthcare Strategy and Market Development (SHSMD) of the American Hospital Association have elected Maria Royce, a healthcare public relations, communications and marketing executive from York, PA, as 2011 president-elect of the SHSMD board of directors. Royce will become president of the 4,000-member organization of healthcare strategy professionals on January 1, 2012.
President-elect designate Maria Royce is vice president of community relations at WellSpan Health, a regional not-for-profit, integrated health system serving south central Pennsylvania and northern Maryland. Before being named to her current position in 2005, she was director of planning and marketing at WellSpan Health; director of public and corporate relations at York Health System; and director of public relations at Ohio Valley General Hospital, Pittsburgh, PA.
Five healthcare leaders were elected to the 17-member SHSMD board of directors. They are Nadine Bendycki, principal and founder, MarketWhys; Kathy Dean, director of marketing communications, Oregon Health & Science University; Ben Dillon, vice president and e-health evangelist, Geonetric Inc.; Christine Gallery, vice president of planning and market development, Emerson Hospital, Concord; and Kevin Stranberg, director of public relations, Memorial Medical Center.
