MetroHealth Appoints President of the Institute for H.O.P.E.²

Merugu, Srinivas_headshot

The MetroHealth System has appointed Srinivas Merugu, MD, FACP, MMM, CPE, to lead its nationally recognized Institute for H.O.P.E.^2™, which works to achieve health equity by identifying and addressing factors beyond medical care that impact the health and well-being of patients and the broader community.

Dr. Merugu, who has been named President of Institute for H.O.P.E.² and Senior Vice President of Population Health, joins MetroHealth from United Healthcare where he most recently served as National Chief Medical Officer for Provider Strategy. He started in his new role Monday, April 8.

At United Healthcare, Dr. Merugu developed strategies, in partnership with providers across the nation, to improve population health outcomes; deployed care transformation initiatives; and led equity-related initiatives, including those addressing social drivers of health. An internal medicine physician by training, Dr. Merugu also practiced as a primary care physician and held several roles with St. Vincent Charity Medical Center, including Chief Medical Informatics Officer, before joining United Healthcare. He lives in Cleveland with his wife and son.

“Dr. Merugu has dedicated his career to ensuring everyone has a chance at the healthiest possible life, no matter what their background,” said MetroHealth President & CEO Airica Steed, Ed.D, RN, MBA, FACHE. “He will play a leading role in our fight to eradicate health disparities and ultimately lift the health and wealth of the communities we serve. He brings a vision for addressing the social factors that impact health and a plan for achieving that vision. But, most importantly, he knows our community well, and he cares about our neighbors.”

The Institute for H.O.P.E.² was established in 2019 to focus on Health, Opportunities, Partnerships and Empowerment to advance Equity. Earlier this year, the second “E” was added to the name to reflect the Institute’s emphasis on health equity.

The Institute screens patients for social drivers of health – like food insecurity, a lack of safe and stable housing and inadequate access to reliable transportation – and develops programs to intervene. The Institute also partners with community-based organizations to address those needs and conducts research.

The Institute is nationally recognized for its work, which includes initiatives like its Food as Medicine Clinic; the Opportunity Center, where community members can find help with financial coaching, job and housing assistance and other social needs; the School Health Program, which provides clinical services for students throughout Cuyahoga County and is a national model for school-based health; and the Center for the Arts in Health, which brings the healing power of the arts out of the hospital and into the community.

Dr. Merugu takes on the role following the retirements of the Institute’s inaugural President Sue Fuehrer and founding Medical Director Jim Misak, MD. Under their leadership, the Institute established itself as a strong community contributor and gained a presence on the national stage.

“I am honored to take on this role with the Institute for H.O.P.E.² and help guide the next phase of its mission, which is nothing short of addressing the fact that people are dying prematurely, unnecessarily and disproportionately to their neighbors and relatives who live just a few miles away,” Dr. Merugu said. “During its first few years, the Institute has laid the foundation of understanding the patient population and learning the scope and depth of the problems associated with health-related social needs. Now we are in action mode.”

Dr. Merugu said the focus of the next few years is to bring the activities and goals of the Institute for H.O.P.E.² into closer alignment with those of the clinical care delivery teams and community partners. His plan to accomplish that includes:

• Identifying shared goals with clinical departments beginning with the primary care and maternal and infant care teams and progressing on to other specialties.Incorporating data and information collected by the Institute in a way that makes it visible and useful to all caregivers, regardless of where they serve patients.
• Improving and optimizing processes to help synergize the work of clinical teams and the Institute.
• Identifying funding mechanisms to make the Institute’s work self-sustaining.
• Intensifying efforts to collaborate and build community partnerships with stakeholders outside of MetroHealth to create and advance a shared vision for the health of the community.

“Dr. Merugu’s vision focuses on outcomes and making meaningful change in the health and lives of patients,” said Nabil Chehade, MD, Executive Vice President, Chief Clinical Transformation Officer. “His experience and compassion make him perfectly suited to lead the Institute for H.O.P.E.² into its next chapter.”