The Board of Directors of Arkansas Hospice has named Dr. Brian Bell as the next president and CEO for Arkansas Hospice’s family of care. Bell, who currently serves as the organization’s chief medical officer, will step into his new role effective Mar. 10.
Bell joined Arkansas Hospice in 2016 as vice president and chief medical officer. He is board-certified in both family medicine and hospice and palliative medicine, and he is one Arkansas’ only doctors with the designation of Fellow from the Academy of Hospice and Palliative Medicine.
Working in hospice care since 2006, Bell is currently on the faculty at the UAMS where he teaches hospice and palliative medicine fellows. He also serves on the Professional Education Committee of the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization, which is now part of the National Alliance for Care at Home.
Bell replaces current president and CEO Judith Wooten, who announced her retirement last year. Wooten will remain on staff through the end of April to ensure a smooth transition. She joined Arkansas Hospice in 2002 as vice president and chief operating officer. Wooten was named president and CEO in 2011 following the death of Michael Aureli, who founded the organization with Dee Brazil-Dale in 1992.
“I stand on the shoulders of the remarkable leaders who came before me — Michael and Judy — whose vision, dedication and unwavering commitment built Arkansas Hospice into the compassionate, mission-driven organization it is today,” Bell said in a press release. “Their leadership has left an enduring impact, and I am honored to carry their legacy forward.”
Bell has also served on the Arkansas Physicians Orders for Life Sustaining Treatments Taskforce since 2017, and worked with the legislature and others in its passage. Previously, he was on faculty at two medical schools in South Carolina and was the founder and program director of the first hospice and palliative medicine fellowship in South Carolina in 2014.
“Dr. Bell’s experience and proven leadership in both clinical and managerial roles make him the ideal candidate to lead our organization as we start our next chapter,” Rhonda Finnie, Chair of the Arkansas Hospice Board of Directors, said in the release. “On behalf of the entire board, we congratulate him and thank Judy Wooten for her tireless dedication. She led Arkansas Hospice through tremendous growth and navigated the organization through COVID, regulatory challenges and a changing health care environment with tremendous compassion and commitment to our mission.”
Arkansas Hospice is the state’s largest nonprofit provider of hospice services. It provides care in 44 counties with an average daily census of 650.
In recent years, the organization has developed a continuum of care to provide care for Arkansans before they need hospice care. It includes Arkansas Palliative Care, which provides support for patients at any stage of serious illness while still receiving curative treatments; Arkansas Advanced Care, which offers primary care for seniors where they live; and First Choice Senior Care, which provides non-medical personal care for seniors in Central Arkansas.
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