She has been with the hospital for 28 years.
Dr. Cheryl Cioffi, Incoming President and CEO of Frederick Health Hospital
(Photo from Frederick Health Hospital’s Facebook page)
Frederick, Md (KM) “An incredible honor and responsibility” at the same time is how Dr. Cheryl Cioffi describes taking over the job of President and CEO of Frederick Health Hospital. “I will tell you what inspires me most is our mission, and that is to positively impact the well being of every individual in our community,” she says. “And I guess that’s something that everyone wants to do: make a difference.”
Cioffi was named to the position early in May,, 2025, by the hospital’s Board of Directors. She will take over as President said CEO on July 1st, 2025, replacing Tom Kleinhanzl, who will be CEO Emeritus until his retirement on October 31srt, 2025.
Dr. Cioffi has been with Frederick Health Hospital for 28 years, starting off as a bedside nurse before moving into several administrative positions. She says her contact with patients will be helpful in her new job as President and CEO.. “And I understand first hand when I make a decision, it may affect those patients in the bed, the caregivers, their families. So this really helps to keep that respect and awareness alive,” she says.
One of the biggest challenges facing the hospital, says Cioffi, has to do with the facility’s workforce. “Like many other health systems, we’re continuing to navigate recruitment and retention pressures. But we have built strong partnerships with schools and colleges so that we can help develop pipelines for people who may not even know yet that they’re interested in the health care field. So we want to continue exploring new ways to help grow our own talent,” she says,
Another challenge is keeping pace with Frederick County’s growth. “And looking ahead, I think what we are most focused on is continuing to meet the needs of our population that will it continue to grow and age in Frederick County,” says Dr. Cioffi. “We need to keep growing with this county that is growing at a very fast pace.”
Earlier this year, FHH experienced a ransomware attack which affected some of its systems. Dr. Cioffi says the hospital can’t prevent all attacks, but FHH is continuing its efforts to protect its data. “We do regularly conduct down time drills. We do training and we do tabletop exercises to prepare for scenarios like this. I will tell you we continue to strengthen our IT systems and we will continue to do that going forward. We will continue to invest in new tools and technology as they come out,” she says.
With all of her responsibilities, Dr. Cioffi says she wants to be accessible to the FHH staff, and the community it serves. “I really want our staff and our community to know that I’m someone who they can reach out and talk to and trust,” she says. “Because I believe that will be another cornerstone of my leadership and will help all of us going forward.”
By Kevin McManus