Brian A. Hawkins

Healing Hands Ministries has named healthcare executive Brian A. Hawkins its new chief executive officer. Hawkins will begin his new job in May as leader of Healing Hands’ mission to provide compassionate, accessible, quality healthcare to uninsured and underinsured patients at their Lake Highlands and Vickery Meadow campuses.

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For the past two years, Hawkins served as president and CEO of Family Health Centers in Baltimore, which, like Healing Hands, is a federally qualified health center. Before that, he spent 27 years serving American veterans in the Department of Veterans Affairs, including a 7-year term as CEO of the District of Columbia VA Medical Center in Washington, D.C. During his tenure with the VA, Hawkins served in numerous leadership positions across the country including Muskogee, Baltimore and Nashville.

“We are thrilled to welcome Brian Hawkins, who brings not only impressive qualifications and experience, but also a heart for community and commitment to the relationship-centered care that is so central to our mission,” said Adam Chabira, chairman of the board of Healing Hands Ministries. “We have accomplished great things in 14 years – having started with a single clinic with all-volunteer physicians to now caring for thousands each year across seven clinical service lines with a staff of over 100 — and we are excited to see what is ahead with Brian at the helm.”

Hawkins earned a Bachelor of Liberal Arts and Sciences from Southern Illinois University and a Masters of Health Administration from Governors State University. He is a member of the American College of Healthcare Executives, is a former delegate to the American Hospital Association Regional Policy Board and has served on numerous professional and community organization boards. He served with the Illinois Army National Guard and was an adjunct professor at Northeastern State University. Hawkins is married with two children.

“I am honored to join Healing Hands Ministries at a time when compassionate, quality healthcare is in even greater need as families recover from the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Hawkins. “I am looking forward to being a part of such a worthy mission that is actively changing lives and serving an incredible community.”

Healing Hands provided more than 42,000 patient visits last year at its two clinics. Services include pediatrics, women’s care, dental, vision and behavior health, and 65% of the medical staff is bilingual, serving patients who speak 68 different languages.