Program Officer Joseph Napolitano Assumes New Role at LVHN
The Dorothy Rider Pool Health Care Trust and The Rider-Pool Foundation extend best wishes to Joseph J. Napolitano as he moves on to a new professional position at Lehigh Valley Health Network (LVHN). Napolitano served as a Program Officer for the two organizations since 2000. In March, he will begin work as the Vice President of Patient Care Services at LVHN – Muhlenberg.
Over the course of his tenure at The Trust and The Foundation, Napolitano was responsible for more than 600 grants in excess of $60 million dollars. He worked as an active partner with grantee organizations and developed a record of achievements in program development that will have lasting outcomes in the region.
Napolitano helped found and served on the board of The Wellness Community of the Greater Lehigh Valley, (now the Cancer Support Community), an organization devoted to providing psychosocial support to patients with cancer and their family members, and the Lehigh Valley Alliance on Aging, a federation of agencies collaboratively addressing older adult issues in the region. He also organized the first telehealth services program in a school-based environment in Pennsylvania.
Working with LVHN, Napolitano managed a notable $9 million grant to the Department of Education, helped to create the LVHN Nurse Residency Program, and worked to develop the Regional Integrated Collaborative for Healthy Youth (RICHY).
Edward F. Meehan, Executive Director of The Trust and The Foundation, said, “I thank Joe for all his efforts to improve the health and quality of life for the people of the Lehigh Valley these past two decades. As a direct result of Joe’s work, many people living with cancer and their families have the support they need, many children have improved access to the health care they need, and hundreds of students in high school and college have paths to careers in nursing, medicine and health professions, which, in turn, has served thousands.”
Napolitano, a nurse practitioner, managed the Trauma-Critical Care Surgical Intensive Care Unit at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania prior to his role with The Trust and Foundation. He also served as the Assistant Administrator for Nursing at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center. Clearly devoted to academics, Napolitano earned a PhD from New York University, an MPH from Yale University, a BSN and MSN from the University of Pennsylvania, and a BA from Skidmore College. He is an adjunct faculty member at Cedar Crest College and DeSales University.
Napolitano said, “Working with The Pool Trust and The Rider-Pool Foundation and the long commitment of the two organizations to improving the social determinants of health has given me a unique and valuable perspective. With clinical, research, and academic experience in hand, I hope to apply that broad vision of health, that important framework, in a way that enhances diverse patient experiences.”
Referencing his professional memberships and board positions, Napolitano says he is grateful The Trust and The Foundation allowed him to carry out civic commitments. He was appointed to the Pennsylvania State Board of Nursing in 2008, and was elected Vice Chair in 2009 and Chair in 2010-2012. In 2013, he became a member of the board of the Pennsylvania Action Coalition, a group working to develop and implement long-term solutions to improve health in Pennsylvania. He was elected Chair in 2017, a role he still holds.
Napolitano is a member of Sigma Theta Tau, the PA State Nurses Association, the PA Coalition of Nurse Practitioners, the South Eastern Pennsylvania Surge Medical Assistance Response Team (SEPA SMART) and serves on the board of directors of The Hillside School.
The Dorothy Rider Pool Health Care Trust and The Rider-Pool Foundation offer sincere congratulations to our colleague, Joseph J. Napolitano, on his new role.
