By Daniel Casciato
In September, Steward Health Care named Marisela Marrero, M.D., as its first Regional President for the South Florida Region. In her new role, Dr. Marrero oversees the five hospitals Steward acquired from Tenet Healthcare Corporation last month, including North Shore Medical Center, Coral Gables Hospital, Hialeah Hospital, Palmetto General Hospital in Miami-Dade County, and Florida Medical Center in Broward County.
“The opportunity to become market president was a pivotal one, because it allows me to instill positive change in a community that I personally love and have ties to,” she says.
Dr. Marrero will also lead the hospitals’ efforts to respond to the recent surge in COVID-19 cases, as well as to expand high-quality, physician-led healthcare to the diverse communities of South Florida.
“My primary challenge has been the resurgence of COVID-19,” she says. “Hence, we are joining forces with all of the stakeholders in our community in an effort to educate the public on the importance of vaccination.”
In addition to her regional role, Dr. Marrero has served as the new President of Hialeah Hospital since August.
Prior to coming to Steward, Dr. Marrero, a Harvard-trained, board certified emergency room physician, was clinically practicing as an ED physician at North Shore Medical Center, which included Salem Hospital in Salem, MA and Union Hospital in Lynn MA. Both hospitals were part of Partners Healthcare which is now known as Mass General Brigham.
She also served as President of Good Samaritan Medical Center, one of Steward’s largest and most successful Massachusetts hospitals. Originally from Puerto Rico, Dr. Marrero has dedicated her career to engaging and partnering with Latino communities to provide vital health information and care, regularly appearing on Spanish-language television to provide expertise on many important healthcare topics.
Since she was a young girl, Dr. Marrero says that she always knew that she wanted to practice medicine.
“It was the perfect combination for someone who loved both science and people,” she says.
Based in Dallas, Steward currently operates 44 hospitals around the world, including 39 across Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas, and Utah, as well as five internationally within Malta and Colombia.
This past summer, Steward and Tenet Healthcare Corporation announced that they had signed a definitive agreement regarding the acquisition by Steward of Tenet’s five hospitals and related hospital operations in the Miami-Dade and Southern Broward counties.
“Steward acquired these hospitals for a variety of reasons,” explains Dr. Marrero. “For one, this is our chairman’s beloved home state. Second, Steward is a physician-led system, and as such, we have a unique way of partnering with our providers and our patients that unquestionably results in better care. Finally, we are fully engaged, on all fronts, and will work hand in hand with our community to address their needs.”
Dr. Marrero is excited about her new role and the challenges and opportunities that await her.
“My vision is to deliver the highest quality healthcare within all of our communities,” she notes. “The Steward Healthcare System will take this region to new heights and we will provide compassionate high quality care throughout the region.”
For more information, please visit www.steward.org.
