Baptist Health names Dr. Jody Prather chief strategy officer

Dr. Jody Prather

Baptist Health, Kentucky's largest hospital company, has named Dr. Jody Prather of Elizabethtown its chief strategy officer, a job in which he will work with other executives "to create strategic initiatives that establish Baptist Health’s direction in business development, growth, partnerships and innovation," Baptist said in a press release.

Prather succeeds Patty Mason, who retired in March as chief strategy and marketing officer. The revised title reflects new responsibilities, since Baptist recently created and filled the job of chief operating officer.

Prather, 43, previously served as Baptist’s first chief medical officer and is now chief strategy officer and vice president for population health at Hardin Memorial Health in Elizabethtown, which is managed by Baptist and will become part of the company in December. He is also chief medical officer for the hospital's group of clinics.

“I am excited to join the Baptist Health leadership team because we have a shared vision of transforming healthcare across our communities to make a real difference in the lives of our patients, both now and in the future,” Prather said. 

Prather graduated from Centre College and the University of Louisville School of Medicine and completed a family medicine residency at the Trover Clinic and Regional Medical Center in Madisonville, now Baptist Health Madisonville. After private practice in Elizabethtown, he joined HMH as vice president and chief medical officer, then held the same jobs with Baptist. In mid-2013, he returned to HMH, where his accomplishments included "overseeing several initiatives that resulted in an average annual revenue increase of 9 percent, expanding health-care services in Hardin County plus the neighboring counties of LaRue, Meade and Nelson to more than 50 locations and growing the medical group to more than 220 providers," the news release said.

Prather’s community involvement includes serving on the Hardin County/Elizabethtown Industrial Foundation board of directors and as secretary/treasurer of the Central Kentucky Community Foundation. He was on Louisville Business First's “40 Under 40” list in 2012 and, the following year, listed by the publication as a “Person to Watch” for business leadership in health care. The Prather name is a big one in Hardin County; the doctor's father, Joe Prather, was a state senator, finance secretary and transportation secretary.