Dina Wong, MHSA, has been named executive director of Lenox Health Greenwich Village (LHGV). She will oversee the daily operations of the facility and spearhead further development of its programs and services. LHGV, a division of Lenox Hill Hospital, is a state-of-the art medical pavilion offering a full-service 24-hour emergency department, a comprehensive diagnostic imaging suite, an ambulatory surgery center, a telepsychiatry hub and a range of physician practices.
Ms. Wong’s appointment is a promotion from her previous post as deputy executive director of Northwell’s Staten Island University Hospital (SIUH). In that role, she led the efforts to enhance the quality of care and patient experience and drove the strategic growth of hospital and ambulatory services. She also oversaw the hospital’s capital planning, budget management, and team member engagement transformation. During the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, Ms. Wong helped steer SIUH’s response and recovery plans by assembling a multidisciplinary team to focus on agile strategic planning, operational needs assessments, and communication strategy.
Throughout her 20-year career at SIUH, Ms. Wong held various positions of progressive responsibility in all aspects of hospital operations and has made significant contributions to the hospital’s operational outcomes and growth. As SIUH’s associate executive director, she redesigned health information, bed management and case management services resulting in a 30% reduction in 30-day readmission rates. Earlier in her career, she served as administrator of ambulatory oncology, radiation medicine, hospice, palliative care and physician practices. Ms. Wong began her career at Northwell as an administrative resident while pursuing her master’s in Health Services Administration from George Washington University. She completed her bachelor’s degree with a major in biology at Western Maryland College.
Ms. Wong is taking over for Alex Hellinger, DPT, MBA, FACHE, who has served as LHGV’s executive director since the facility opened in 2014. Dr. Hellinger has taken on a new role as senior vice president and regional executive director of Northwell’s Brooklyn region. In this position, he will be responsible for managing the health system’s strategic affiliation with Maimonides Medical Center and alliance with Wyckoff Heights Medical Center, which were established to deliver high-quality care to the borough’s diverse communities. He will also oversee Northwell’s consulting relationship with One Brooklyn Health System, comprised of Brookdale, Interfaith and Kingsbrook Jewish Medical Centers.
As executive director – and previously associate executive director – of LHGV, Dr. Hellinger directed the development and expansion of what has become an integrated medical ecosystem in downtown Manhattan. After helping establish Manhattan’s first free-standing emergency center in the West Village in 2014, his leadership transformed LHGV into a medical hub that currently includes a variety of critical health services that revitalized the care provided to a community, which had been without medical services since the closure of St. Vincent’s Hospital in 2010.
In addition, Dr. Hellinger has built strong ties and relationships with organizations that are vital to the West Village community, including The Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Community Center (The Center), The New York City AIDS Memorial and NYC Pridefest. As a result, LHGV has been consistently recognized as a leader in LGBTQ healthcare equality. Earlier this year, it was honored with The Center’s Community Award for its commitment to delivering equitable and compassionate care to the LGBTQ community and for the heroic work of its staff throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. It is also one of 27 Northwell facilities to be designated a leader in LGBTQ healthcare equality by the Human Rights Campaign Foundation.
Dr. Hellinger joined Northwell in 2004 as administrative director of the orthopedic service line and director of rehabilitation services at Long Island Jewish Valley Stream and later served as associate executive director of clinical services, overseeing more than a dozen critical departments. He received his bachelor’s degree from the University of Hartford, a doctorate of physical therapy from A.T. Still University and an MBA from Hofstra University. He is board certified in healthcare management as a fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives.
About Northwell Health
Northwell Health is New York State’s largest health care provider and private employer, with 23 hospitals, 830 outpatient facilities and more than 16,600 affiliated physicians. We care for over two million people annually in the New York metro area and beyond, thanks to philanthropic support from our communities. Our 77,000 employees – 18,900 nurses and 4,800 employed doctors, including members of Northwell Health Physician Partners – are working to change health care for the better. We’re making breakthroughs in medicine at the Feinstein Institutes for Medical Research. We’re training the next generation of medical professionals at the visionary Donald and Barbara Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell and the Hofstra Northwell School of Nursing and Physician Assistant Studies. For information on our more than 100 medical specialties, visit Northwell.edu and follow us @NorthwellHealth on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn.
