Health systems appear to be elevating outpatient care to the C-suite at a sharply quickening pace in 2026, as the role of chief ambulatory officer emerges to become an increasingly popular executive post.
Scanning Becker’s coverage for 2025, the only ambulatory-related executive activity was Clearwater, Fla.-based BayCare Health System expanding C. Todd Jones’ existing role of chief strategy officer to add “chief ambulatory services officer” and Jennifer Small’s appointment as CEO of ambulatory care services at Bellaire, Texas-based Harris Health.
By contrast, Becker’s has tracked at least five new ambulatory C-suite appointments: Stanford (Calif.) Health Care, Sacramento, Calif.-based Sutter Health, Salt Lake City-based University of Utah Health, Minneapolis-based Children’s Minnesota, and Cody (Wyo.) Regional Health. Absent an independent industrywide census, the activity should be read as directional rather than definitive.
The Cody Regional Health appointment particularly stands out because it could indicate the role migrating beyond large academic systems into smaller, regional ones. Meanwhile, the Floyd County Medical Center move suggests the position is also becoming a proving ground for broader executive responsibility rather than a siloed specialty post.
The prospective growth tracks with a broader boom in ambulatory investment. Outpatient services made up 57% of hospital revenue in 2024, up from 52% in 2020, per American Hospital Association data. Sg2 projects 17% growth in outpatient volume over the next decade — possibly pushing systems to rethink who owns ambulatory strategy at the executive level.
At BayCare, Mr. Jones’ role was expanded to reflect the “increasing importance of outpatient care as a primary growth vehicle and a central driver of long-term system performance,” he told Becker’s. “The change clarified system-level decision rights around ambulatory access, network development, physician integration and capital prioritization while reinforcing alignment between growth strategy and day-to-day operational execution.”
The pattern suggests the chief ambulatory officer is becoming a standard fixture in the executive lineup, as more systems — including smaller regional ones — decide ambulatory care needs a dedicated voice at the table.
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