Friday, October 30, 2009

BIRMINGHAM, AL --- Mary Chris Ponder has been named operations director for Baptist Health Centers (BHC). Ponder assumed BHC responsibilities on October 19.

As operations director, Ponder will serve as a liaison between the 48 BHS clinics, Baptist Health System (BHS) and the four BHS hospitals. Ponder will also work to ensure a productive and financially secure work environment for the clinics.

Since the completion of her administrative residency at Baptist Health in Montgomery in May, Ponder served there as manager of physician specialty practices, where she was responsible for profit and loss management of specialty clinics, as well as physician alignment and cultural integration.

Ponder earned a B.S. in finance/economics and a minor in philosophy from Spring Hill College in Mobile, AL. She also obtained masters degrees in healthcare administration and health informatics from the University of Alabama at Birmingham.

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About Baptist Health System - Baptist Health System, Inc. is one of the largest health care systems in Alabama and one of the state's largest employers. The System is a not-for-profit, 501(c) corporation that owns and manages four hospitals in the state of Alabama. Baptist Health System is a ministry of the churches of the Birmingham Baptist Association, whose representatives elect the Board of Trustees. It was founded in 1922 by a group of local Baptist congregations.