New Zufall Health CEO sees improved care for children, low-income patients
Zufall Health, the Dover-based network of medical clinics, introduced a new CEO this week whose goals include continued expansion of its services for low-income and immigrant communities.
The nonprofit said it had concluded a nationwide search by picking Frances L. Palm, its chief operating officer, to be president and CEO. She succeeds Eva Turbiner, who ran the organization for 16 years and helped build it into a $54 million-a-year operation serving 44,000 patients in Morris, Sussex and five other counties.
High on Palm's agenda, she said in an interview Tuesday, would be to participate in an expansion of the state's Medicaid program in 2023 that covers an additional 16,000 New Jersey children. Through the expansion, about 4,000 of Zufall’s existing pediatric patients will now be eligible for Medicaid, which also affords them greater access to the healthcare system at large.
"We're trying to enroll as many kids as we can in Medicaid," said Palm. "They'll still have the same access to Zufall that they always did. But if we want to refer them to other services, this gives them more access."
Dr. Robert Zufall and his wife, Kathryn, opened a small community clinic in Dover in 1990 to provide medical care to poor, mostly immigrant families. The system has grown to include 11 clinics in eight towns as well as the Highlands Health Van and Delta Dental mobile units. Zufall also operates in Sussex, Warren, Hunterdon, Somerset, Middlesex and Essex counties.
Palm’s appointment follows a national search that yielded more than 200 applicants after Turbiner announced her retirement last year.
"Eva cultivated remarkable growth for Zufall during her tenure, elevating the health center from a tiny clinic to a robust network of nationally recognized care,” said Palm, who's been COO since 2014. "It will be my honor to carry on her vision and steadfast dedication to our patients and community."
U.S. Rep. Mikie Sherrill, D-Montclair, whose congressional district includes Morristown and Dover, said Turbiner "served our community tirelessly to ensure quality health care was available to neighbors in need.
"She was a great partner to my office and me, joining virtual town halls throughout the pandemic to help answer questions from constituents about the public health crisis," Sherrill said in a statement. "Her deep sense of humanity imbued her work expanding the services Zufall provides, especially for local veterans. Her impact on New Jersey will be felt for years."
Palm is taking over an organization of more than 400 staff members operating on an estimated annual budget of $53.6 million in 2023. About half of the patients it serves annually are uninsured.
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“We are confident that Fran is the right choice for Zufall Health’s future,” Michael O’Donnell, chairman of the group's board of directors, said in a statement. “We are also extremely grateful for the 16 years of dedicated service that Eva has given to Zufall Health and appreciate that she will be working with Fran through the end of February to facilitate a seamless transition.”
Prior to joining Zufall, Palm held executive director roles at the Women’s Health & Counseling Center, which merged with Zufall Health in 2014, and NJ 2-1-1.
Zufall provides medical, dental and behavioral health services at its headquarters site in Dover, as well as in Flemington, Franklin Township, Hackettstown, Morristown, Newton, Plainsboro, Somerville and West Orange. The Highlands Health van provides adult medicine, women's health and pediatric services to the community at designated locations, as does the Delta Dental van, which also visits schools.
Palm said the Franklin location will be Zufall's first school-based health center.
"While we are working on renovating a building on the site of one of their elementary schools, we're providing services through our mobile medical van," she said. "Our first goal is to the children. Once we are able to expand, we will expand to the community at large."
The nonprofit opened its first Middlesex County location on May 1 after taking the helm of a community health center on the Penn Medicine Princeton Health campus in Plainsboro.
A long-awaited new clinic in West Orange now under construction will increase Zufall's space there to 15,000 square feet when it opens in the spring.
Palm said she also has the support of Robert Zufall, who at age 98 is still on the center's board of directors.
"We had an employees appreciation event and he came that night," she said. "I've never met a more optimistic person. He's wonderful."
William Westhoven is a local reporter for DailyRecord.com. For unlimited access to the most important news from your local community, please subscribe or activate your digital account today.
Email: wwesthoven@dailyrecord.com Twitter: @wwesthoven
This article originally appeared on Morristown Daily Record: Zufall Health names France Palm new CEO, succeeding Eva Turbiner
