The health system behind six Long Island hospitals has a new leader, and he is a Catholic deacon. Catholic Health announced on October 28 that Deacon Frank L. Kurre will serve as its next president and chief executive officer, effective January 1, 2027.

The appointment came from the Most Rev. John O. Barres, Bishop of the Diocese of Rockville Centre, together with the Corporate Members of Catholic Health, who the system said chose Kurre unanimously.

Three decades inside the system

Kurre is not arriving from outside. According to the announcement, he has spent more than 30 years serving Catholic Health through its boards and committees, and he currently chairs the system's Transformation Steering Committee, the group steering its long-range overhaul. His professional career ran through health care leadership as well: he led the health care practices at two global professional services firms before this appointment.

He is also an ordained Catholic deacon, which makes the appointment unusual among the leadership ranks of major American health systems. Catholic Health said his vocation and his family life both figured in the decision, and that the system's work will stay rooted in its religious mission and its five stated core values: integrity, compassion, accountability, respect and excellence.

What he will be running

Catholic Health is one of the two large hospital systems based on Long Island. Its six acute-care hospitals are St. Francis Hospital and Heart Center in Roslyn, St. Joseph Hospital in Bethpage, Mercy Hospital in Rockville Centre, Good Samaritan University Hospital in West Islip, St. Charles Hospital in Port Jefferson and St. Catherine of Siena Hospital in Smithtown.

By the system's own accounting, that network carries more than 1,900 certified hospital beds, roughly 18,000 employees and about 4.5 billion dollars in annual revenue and operating support. Around it sits Catholic Health Physician Partners, a network of more than 3,700 providers, along with ambulatory and urgent care locations, primary and specialty practices, home care, hospice and rehabilitation services across Nassau and Suffolk.

The system's care lines span cardiovascular medicine, cancer care, surgery, neuroscience, musculoskeletal care, women's health, pediatrics, emergency medicine and behavioral health. Its St. Francis heart program is among the busiest in New York State, and Good Samaritan received the largest philanthropic gift in its history earlier this month to rebuild the only Level III neonatal intensive care unit on Suffolk's South Shore.

The job ahead

Catholic Health said Kurre will lead a continuing transformation of the organization, with the stated goal of establishing it as the premier health system on Long Island. He has been chairing the committee responsible for that effort, so the person who helped draw the map will now be the one driving.

In the announcement, Kurre pointed to the system's physicians, nurses, technicians and employees as the people he intends to serve alongside, and said the organization's Catholic identity and its commitment to compassionate care for everyone who comes through its doors will anchor the work.

Bishop Barres, who chairs the Corporate Members, said Kurre brings a record of excellence from both his career and his vocation, and welcomed him as the new leader of the system's hospitals and related entities.

Kurre takes office on January 1, 2027. Until then, Catholic Health continues operating its hospitals, practices and services across Long Island as usual; patients do not need to do anything differently.

Sources