Mr. Charmel has led Griffin Hospital and its parent, Griffin Health Services, since being named president in 1998, after joining the organization in 1979 and holding several administrative positions. He has embraced the Planetree person-centered model at the 160-bed community teaching hospital, which serves more than 130,000 regional residents and has drawn healthcare organizations from around the globe to study its approach. Under his leadership, Griffin Health opened Connecticut’s first emergency psychiatric assessment, treatment and healing unit in 2025, a 4,300-square-foot space designed to offer a calming alternative to traditional emergency departments for patients in psychiatric crisis. Mr. Charmel also oversaw the 2025 launch of an 11-week mini med school program led by physicians to educate community members on health and disease prevention. Griffin Hospital earned an “A” Leapfrog safety grade in 2025 and was named to Newsweek‘s “World’s Best Hospitals” list for a seventh consecutive year, while Griffin Health became the first organization in Connecticut to earn the Joint Commission’s sustainable healthcare certification. Mr. Charmel serves as president of the Value Care Alliance of Connecticut and sits on the board of trustees at Quinnipiac University. He also chairs and serves as chief executive of Planetree, the subsidiary corporation behind the care model he has championed at Griffin.
