St. Joseph Mercy Chelsea appoints chief nursing officer and chief medical officer

CHELSEA, Mich., (Dec. 18, 2019) – St. Joseph Mercy Chelsea has announced that Alon Weizer, M.D., has been appointed to the role of chief medical officer and Cheryl Taylor, RN, MSN, to the role of chief nursing officer for the hospital.

Dr. Weizer will oversee administration for medical staff, patient safety, clinical quality, care management and other clinical services.  Taylor will oversee administration for nursing services, and work in partnership with Dr. Weizer on issues related to patient quality, standards of patient care, and clinical performance improvement.

“Both are outstanding leaders who will continue the momentum of our nationally-recognized patient safety, colleague engagement and quality performance,” says Nancy Graebner, president of St. Joseph Mercy Chelsea.  “They bring experience, proven track records and, most importantly, a shared commitment to delivering safe, high-quality patient care.”

Since joining St. Joe’s Chelsea in 2017 as a key leader of the hospital’s Joint Venture Steering Team, Dr. Weizer has been an integral member of the medical staff, delivering surgical care, providing urologic on-call coverage, and leading the implementation of the new robotic surgery program.

He is currently the associate chief of staff at Michigan Medicine and holds the dual title of associate chair of Surgical Services for the Department of Urology.  For the past 14 years he has served as a professor of Urology at Michigan Medicine.

Dr. Weizer graduated from Duke University and went on to earn his Doctor of Medicine (M.D.) at Baylor College of Medicine and master’s degree in Clinical Research from the University of Michigan.  He completed his urology residency at Duke University Medical Center and a fellowship in urologic oncology and minimally invasive surgery at the University of Michigan.

Throughout Taylor’s distinguished 28-year nursing career, she has improved the culture and profession of nursing through innovation, clinical excellence and enhanced patient care delivery.  Since 2016, she has led Behavioral Health Services at St. Joseph Mercy Ann Arbor and Livingston, where she launched the health system’s first Transition Clinic to strengthen care coordination between inpatient and outpatient services.

She developed a nurse navigator position to assist patients who have frequent Emergency Department visits. Taylor also formed a team that visits nursing homes and primary care clinics to provide behavioral health services.

Prior to joining St. Joe’s, Taylor served as the nursing administrator at Henry Ford Behavioral Health Services and held ascending nurse leadership roles at Henry Ford Wyandotte Hospital.  She earned her RN from Henry Ford School of Nursing, a bachelor’s degree in Hospital Administration from Siena Heights College, and her master’s degree in Nursing from the University of Phoenix.