Kevin Elledge Joins SLUCare Physician Group as New CEO

Kevin Elledge is the new chief executive officer of SLUCare Physician Group. Elledge most recently served as the chief administrative officer of OU Physicians, the faculty practice plan of the University of Oklahoma. He started in his new leadership role at Saint Louis University earlier this month.

"Kevin’s expertise will be an asset to SLUCare as we move the practice forward,” said Robert Wilmott, M.D., Dean and Vice President for Medical Affairs. “He will be a decisive leader with the ability to understand physicians’ viewpoints and work strategically in the best interest of patients and the practice."

As CEO of SLUCare, Elledge’s many responsibilities include:

• Overseeing the strategy and vision of the faculty practice plan and direct all clinical, quality, administrative, and fiscal functions.
• Serving as SLUCare’s representative for the organization’s strategic partnership with SSM Health.
• Ensuring operations align with the goals and initiatives of SLUCare and the School of Medicine.
• Developing short- and long-term business planning, evaluating business opportunities, and assessing the effectiveness and consistency with strategic objectives.
• Supporting department chairs and promoting the highest standards of clinical care and advance quality, patient safety, and service excellence benchmarks
• Ensuring that the expansion of SLUCare is coordinated and successfully planned and implemented.

Wilmott said Elledge has an impressive record of leadership and achievement in a complex academic medical center environment. He spent 17 years in executive leadership at the University of Oklahoma Health Science Center. There, he was part of unprecedented growth and improved operational efficiency. 

With formal training in computer science and a background in technology and program development, Elledge launched a healthcare software startup firm, MDS, which created a nurse advice system and an Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) transaction system. WebMD ultimately purchased the startup. 

In 2003, Elledge was recruited to OU Physicians. He entered as the director of revenue cycle operations, which complemented the cross-section of his IT background, claims adjudication experience, and understanding of billing within an electronic health record. Elledge later became executive director of operations of OU Physicians while also serving as the finance officer for the clinical practice. He was named chief administrative officer in 2016. 

Elledge had numerous accomplishments while he was with OU Physicians, including:

• Established an internal operational infrastructure and implemented core functions that provided greater transparency of data.
• Maintained financial accountability for the faculty practice plan, as well as clinical operations, strategy and business development, marketing, information technology, revenue cycle functions, and analytics and provision of core practice management services.
• Worked closely with physicians and staff to improve patient experience scores.
• Led efforts to elevate employee engagement.

Wilmott also highlighted Elledge’s history of partnering with physician leaders to implement change. 

"Kevin’s focus on service excellence has historically improved patient experience, and he has a consistent record of improving operational efficiency and reducing costs,” Wilmott said. “His background indicates he will offer the operating infrastructure necessary to ensure clinical operations are responsive, efficient, and fiscally responsible."