With more than 25 years of experience in healthcare management, Victoria W. Bayless leads Luminis Health as CEO. Bayless joined Anne Arundel Medical Center in December 2005 as vice president of clinical and support services, advancing to chief operating officer in 2006, president and COO in September 2009, and CEO in 2011.

Her career began at MedStar Washington Hospital Center, where she served in several roles beginning in 1993, most recently as vice president of clinical services. Bayless holds a Bachelor of Science from Tufts University and a Master of Health Services Administration from the University of Michigan School of Public Health.

With nearly three decades of experience in direct patient care and executive leadership, Cheryl Cioffi serves as president and CEO of Frederick Health, a role she assumed July 1, 2025. A Doctor of Nursing Practice graduate of the University of Maryland, Baltimore, Cioffi previously served the health system as chief nursing officer, chief operating officer and chief administrative officer.

A fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives, she is active in the Frederick County Chamber of Commerce and the Rotary Club of Carroll Creek, where she co-chairs the Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Committee.

What is the biggest challenge facing your industry today?

The biggest challenge facing hospitals in Maryland and across the country is delivering high-quality and timely care while navigating continued workforce shortages and sustained cost pressures that reimbursement does not always cover.

Despite these challenges, I am optimistic because our mission is clear, and our team is exceptional. We will continue facing these challenges together to deliver the safe, compassionate care our community depends on.

What is the best advice you’ve ever received?

One of the best pieces of advice I have ever been given is, “No matter what you choose to do, just be the best, and be happy doing it.” My father always said that to me. That mindset has motivated me in every role I’ve had and pushed me to work hard, keep learning and bring my best each day. I’ve shared that with others who have come to me for direction or career advice.

How do you define success?

I define success as achieving a goal where everyone who played a part feels really proud of the outcome.

A background in mass communications laid the foundation for Melissa Clark’s career connecting rural communities to healthcare resources. Clark serves as CEO of AHEC West, the Maryland Area Health Education Center West, a Cumberland-based nonprofit with 40 employees focused on reducing healthcare workforce shortages across Western Maryland.

She holds a Master of Public Administration in healthcare management from Grand Canyon University and is pursuing a Master of Public Health at the University of California, Berkeley. Clark was named to The Daily Record’s Top 100 Women in Maryland in 2026 and received White House Challenge to Save Lives recognition in 2024. She serves as president of the Maryland Rural Health Association and board chair of Potomac Highlands United Way.

What is the biggest challenge facing your industry today?

The biggest challenge facing our industry today is sustainability at scale — meeting increasing community needs while building the workforce, funding structures and cross-sector partnerships necessary to sustain impact long term. This includes workforce shortages, inconsistent reimbursement and funding models, growing behavioral health and social needs, and the challenge of aligning healthcare, public health and community-based systems to work together more effectively.

What is the best advice you’ve ever received?

Always say “thank you” to your employees. A small thank you means the world to them.

Also, a wise mentor once told me, “As a strong female leader, you have to rise above the fray, but do not take any s— from anyone.”

How do you define success?

In the nonprofit world, it is not about money! We are underpaid and overworked. But that is why anyone in this realm of work loves it. It is impactful. It is creating a real-world impact that is sustainable. It means helping move good ideas into action, building strong partnerships and developing programs or systems that improve lives long after the initial funding or project ends.

A community pediatrician and owner of Dundalk Pediatrics Associates in Southeast Baltimore County, Rachel Dodge brings specialized expertise in the health of high-risk populations, particularly children in foster care. She is the president of the Maryland Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics.

Dodge has served on state and national workgroups addressing the health needs of foster children and advocates for pediatrics through her appointment on the Maryland Medicaid Advisory Committee. She also teaches medical students and pediatric residents as a community preceptor and holds a part-time appointment as assistant professor of pediatrics at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine.

A 15-year advocate for minority communities’ health, Ashyrra Dotson co-founded Eastern Shore Wellness Solutions Inc., a nonprofit delivering health education and training across Dorchester, Talbot and Caroline counties on Maryland’s Eastern Shore. Previously community health strategist and program director at Associated Black Charities, Dotson transitioned in 2017 to lead the wellness organization as president and CEO alongside co-founder Joyce Opher.

Dotson manages multiple grant-funded programs, coordinates Dorchester County’s first Community Health Outreach Worker team and directs education initiatives targeting diabetes, hypertension and obesity.

Dotson holds a master’s degree in social psychology and completed leadership training through the Satcher Health Leadership Institute at Morehouse College.

With more than 30 years of senior-level experience in healthcare, Michele Eberle leads the Maryland Health Benefit Exchange as its executive director, overseeing the agency’s strategic direction, leadership and all operational functions. Under her leadership, the exchange established the largest state reinsurance program in the nation, producing three years of double-digit premium reductions.

Eberle previously served as executive director of the Maryland Health Insurance Program. She holds an MBA from Southern New Hampshire University and a bachelor’s degree in management, computer science and religious studies from Nazareth University. She serves on the Eastport Yacht Club board of directors and is a member of the League of Women Voters.

What is the biggest challenge facing your industry today?

Federal government actions that are in conflict with our mission of providing accessible, affordable health insurance to all Marylanders.

What is the best advice you’ve ever received?

You can do anything you want, but remember, you are responsible for the consequences.

How do you define success?

As a leader, setting strategic direction, then building a team that is diverse, compassionate, empowered, innovative, ethical and removing roadblocks so they can achieve their best and the agency/company can perform its best.

A career spanning more than two decades in medicine, 15 of them in physician leadership, brought Paari Gopalakrishnan, MD, MBA, to Greater Baltimore Medical Center as president and CEO. Originally from College Station, Texas, Gopalakrishnan built his career largely in Rhode Island, where he launched the state’s first Hospital-at-Home program and served as president and chief operations officer at Kent Hospital, leading it from deficit to profitability.

He earned his medical degree from the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, completed his internal medicine residency at Brown University and earned his Master of Business Administration with honors from Bryant University.

A licensed clinical social worker and former Maryland state lawmaker, Melony G. Griffith is president and CEO of the Maryland Hospital Association, a role she assumed in December 2023 after a 22-year legislative career.

First elected to the House of Delegates in 1998 representing Prince George’s County’s District 25, she later served in the state Senate, where she chaired the Senate Finance Committee and held roles including president pro tempore.

Before her legislative career, Griffith served as vice president of external and government affairs for Greater Baden Medical Services and as a hospital discharge planner. She holds a Master of Social Work from Howard University.

What is the biggest challenge facing your industry today?

Maryland has the opportunity to lead the nation in state-of-the-art healthcare delivery. To succeed, we need all sectors that touch patient care working in true partnership. The biggest opportunity is aligning providers, payers, policymakers and communities around shared responsibility to ensure care is accessible, affordable and sustainable for every Marylander.

What is the best advice you’ve ever received?

Don’t let perfect be the enemy of good. Progress comes from moving forward, not waiting for perfection.

How do you define success?

Success is when the important work happening in Maryland hospitals is recognized and the responsibility for delivering high-quality care is shared by all who have a role in it, including providers, payers and policymakers. Because care takes all of us.

A healthcare executive with more than two decades of leadership experience, Emily Holliman serves as interim regional president and chief operating officer at Kaiser Permanente Mid-Atlantic States, overseeing strategy and operations across Northern Virginia, Maryland and Washington, D.C.

Holliman joined Kaiser Permanente in 2023 as chief operating officer for the mid-Atlantic before assuming her current role. She holds dual master’s degrees in health administration and business administration from the University of Alabama at Birmingham and completed an executive leadership program at Harvard University in 2025. Holliman is a fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives.

What is the biggest challenge facing your industry today?

Healthcare has become too fragmented. It is becoming more expensive to provide and more difficult to access. Especially in the mid-Atlantic, our population is aging rapidly, and we have a combination of affluent and underresourced communities, which creates entrenched health inequities. We need to improve how we care for our most vulnerable, medically complex patients. When we can eliminate health inequities, we can make health care more cost-effective for everyone and improve health outcomes for all patients.

What is the best advice you’ve ever received?

The best advice I’ve ever received is to listen first — because understanding always comes before being understood. As the saying goes, “You have two ears and one mouth; use them in that proportion.” When you truly listen, you learn what people need, build trust faster and make better decisions. It also helps you catch what’s not being said — the assumptions, concerns and context behind the words. It’s simple, but it changes every conversation.

How do you define success?

I define success by the people you touch and the positive change you help create in their lives. Many define success in terms of achievements, but the real achievement is making a meaningful impact in whatever your role may be. For me, that means investing in people — listening, mentoring and creating opportunities that help others grow. When the people around you are better because you were there, that’s success.

A career spanning federal agencies, academic medicine and hospital leadership informs the work of Maulik Joshi, Dr.P.H., president and CEO of Meritus Health Inc., the Washington County-based system encompassing Meritus Medical Center, the Meritus School of Osteopathic Medicine and Brook Lane.

Before joining Meritus, Joshi served as executive vice president and chief operating officer of Anne Arundel Health System and held senior roles at the American Hospital Association and the Institute for Healthcare Improvement.

He holds a doctorate in public health and a master’s degree in health services administration from the University of Michigan, where he serves as adjunct faculty.

A healthcare executive with broad leadership experience, Kenneth D. Kozel has served as president of UM Shore Regional Health since October 2011. Before assuming that role, he led Upper Chesapeake Health as president, overseeing Harford Memorial Hospital and Upper Chesapeake Medical Center, the culmination of a 14-year tenure that included roles as president of UCH Hospitals, chief operating officer of UCH System and executive vice president.

Earlier in his career, he held several positions at the Johns Hopkins Hospital. Kozel earned a Bachelor of Science from the University of Maryland and a Master of Business Administration from the Johns Hopkins University. He is a fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives.

A healthcare executive with more than two decades at TidalHealth Peninsula Regional, Steven E. Leonard has built a career anchored in organizational leadership and quality improvement. Leonard holds a Bachelor of Science in management and finance from Florida Atlantic University and a Master of Business Administration from Salisbury University. He earned his Doctor of Philosophy in organizational leadership, with a research focus on leadership and organizational effectiveness, from the University of Maryland Eastern Shore.

A former fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives, Leonard served three years as an examiner for the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award and earned Certified Six Sigma Black Belt designation through the American Society for Quality. In 2017, he was appointed to the Maryland Hospital Association Council on Financial Policy.