Honoring IT-savvy CEOs. Green, Murphy, Spezia share the prize in seventh annual competition.

elcome to Modern Healthcare’s seventh annual CEO IT Achievement Awards program, co-sponsored by the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society. In this special editorial section, you’ll meet the three recipients of the 2009 award: Michael Green, president and chief executive officer of Concord (N.H.) Hospital; Edward Murphy, president and CEO of the Carilion Clinic system, Roanoke, Va.; and Anthony Spezia, president and CEO of Covenant Health, Knoxville, Tenn. The award recognizes healthcare CEOs who demonstrate leadership and a commitment to using information technology to advance their organizations’ strategic goals. The trio was chosen from 48 entries in this year’s competition, up from last year’s 37 nominees. A list of this year’s other 45 nominees can be found in the “Awards and Honors” section of Modern Healthcare Online at modernhealthcare.com. A list of the past 15 winners of the award can be found on p. C3 and on the Web site. A five-judge panel consisting of two CEOs chosen by Modern Healthcare and three chief information officers or IT experts chosen by HIMSS selected Green, Murphy and Spezia from the pool of nominees. The judges, who are recognized below on this page, reviewed the nominees using three criteria: ■ The CEO demonstrated leadership and commitment to using IT to advance his or her healthcare organization’s strategic goals. ■ The CEO helped achieve measurable results through leadership and commitment to IT in his or her organization. ■ The CEO shared his or her healthcare organization’s IT experiences to benefit peers and other members of the healthcare industry. The judges rated the nominees on how well they met the three criteria, using a 10-point scale for each. A perfect score was 30. A copy of the criteria, a list of factors to consider under each criterion, and a copy of the 2009 nomination form can be found in the Awards and Honors section of Modern Healthcare Online. Green, Murphy, Spezia share the prize in seventh annual competition