WellSpan Health CIO retires

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R. Hal Baker, MD, the longtime CIO of York, Pa.-based WellSpan Health, has retired.

Dr. Baker was employed by the eight-hospital system for three decades, leading IT teams while treating patients in the clinic.

“From 1995 to 2025, I have enjoyed more roles and responsibilities than I could have imagined, amidst the consistent opportunity to serve as a primary care doctor to one community,” he wrote in a July LinkedIn post. “I am so thankful for the many great people and organizations that I have met along the way.”

Dr. Baker most recently held the role of senior vice president and chief digital and information officer beginning in 2020. He started in IT leadership as chief medical information officer in 2005 before working his way up to CIO and senior vice president of clinical improvement/CIO.

“We make a point of helping each team member see their connection with our mission,” he told Becker’s in 2023. “My hope is that when each is asked what industry they work in, they will naturally say ‘healthcare’ instead of ‘IT.'”

Alexander Petron, DO, who has been vice president and chief medical information officer at WellSpan since 2022, has been named interim CIO.

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