SOMERSET, Pa. — DeVilbiss Healthcare has appointed Alan Panzer as president and CEO. Panzer most recently served as president of United States Surgical/Valleylab Co. for Covidien, and prior to that, as president of Tyco Healthcare Vascular Therapy. His earlier experience includes sales leadership positions at The Kendall Healthcare Co. and Pfizer. "I am excited to join DeVilbiss. As its new CEO, I am committed to accelerate new product launches as well as enhance service to provide compelling solutions for dealers, providers and patients," Panzer said in a press release. "Important in our goals are to lead the industry in driving clinical effectiveness, enhanced comfort and therapy compliance." DeVilbiss said it is "at an important time" in the company's growth with the creation of a new dedicated sales force, the launch of its IntelliPAP sleep therapy product line and upcoming introductions of new ambulatory oxygen lines. Bryan Carey, who has been serving as interim president and CEO, will serve as a senior advisor to Panzer during the transition, the company said.
PHILADELPHIA — Alliance Seating & Mobility, a division of The Scooter Store, has hired Ted O'Neill, a complex rehab specialist with 35 years of experience, as Assistive Technology Supplier (ATS) in Pennsylvania. O'Neill has been a RESNA-certified ATS for 12 years and has served on the board of directors of the National Registry of Rehab Technology Suppliers (NRRTS) for three years. Previously, he worked as an RTS for Associated Medical Specialties in Philadelphia and the Chesapeake Rehab Equipment in Collingdale, Pa. In 1992, he started Teamworks, a branch of Reliant Care, which Chesapeake purchased in 2005. O'Neill was also president of Mid-Atlantic Health Associates, a Newton Square-based organization specializing in rehab equipment sales, and a manager at Accurate Medical Service and Mark One Hospital Products. Created in 2007 to provide complex rehab, ASM has grown from three locations to more than 20.
TUSCON, Ariz. — The board of directors of the Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities (CARF) has elected Cathy Ellis, PT, to serve a one-year term as board chair beginning Jan. 1. Ellis, director of physical rehabilitation and the clinical director of the spinal cord program at the National Rehabilitation Hospital, Washington, D.C., was seated on the CARF board in 2006 and previously served on the organization's board of trustees from 2000 to 2005. "In the coming year, CARF will continue to expand our work to improve the lives of persons served in the human services fields," she said.