Donor Network West Announces Promotion of Justin Johnson, MSBS-HDS, RN, BSN, CPTC to Vice President and Chief Operating Officer
SAN RAMON, CA (June 15, 2023) –Donor Network West is pleased to announce the promotion of Justin Johnson to Vice President and Chief Operating Officer. Johnson came to Donor Network West in 2022 as the Vice President of Donation Development and Organ Operations and, within a short time, made substantial improvements in operations and, most importantly, results.
The organization, which had made substantial improvement in its organ recovery outcomes early on in 2019 – 2020, experienced a downward trend in 2021 through early 2022 as the industry reacted to the groundbreaking changes in the CMS OPO performance metrics put forward in its Final Rule. Johnson’s arrival in mid-2022 provided the solid, steady, and expert leadership he has become known for and quickly reversed that brief trend, resulting in the organization again solidly placed in CMS OPO Tier 1 performance.
With more than 20 years of experience in health care, having helped institutions, hospitals, and organ procurement organizations (OPOs) set goals, serve patients, and achieve their mission, Johnson methodically set about focusing on organ recovery best practices, bolstering relationships, and saving more lives.
“I am incredibly pleased that Justin will continue to improve Donor Network West’s ability to further mission accomplishment in increasing the number of lives saved through transplantation as he assumes his new role as Vice President and Chief Operating Officer. In a very short time, Justin has earned the respect of our Donor Network West staff and hospital partners. As I noted upon his arrival to Donor Network West last year, his integrity, content expertise and proven relationship-building skills did indeed serve to focus and pull our staff together with mission front and center; further strengthening and positioning our organization as a solid performer, improving donation outcomes, increased organ recovery, thus saving more lives through increased organ recovery. Justin is an experienced leader with a demonstrated history in building robust donation systems resulting in increased donation rates and transplantable organs as well as improved OPO operational cost-effectiveness.
Justin is a well-known figure in the donation industry, recognized for his integrity, problem-solving, and solid leadership, as well as his commitment to value accretion by facilitating long-term personal and business relationships within the healthcare community. He has built productive and successful organ and tissue donation systems in the OPOs at which he has served. Justin has successfully focused his teams on maximizing donation potential through strong collaborative relationships, data analysis, feedback integration and medical and nursing staff education.
His strong and winning attitude and personality enhance his ability to meet the needs of patients waiting for transplants and donor families and build a value-add relationship between OPOs and other healthcare entities, chiefly hospitals. By serving as the Chief Operating Officer, Justin’s forthright approach and insistence on value-added component relationships will propel Donor Network West even further into the top-performing OPO I know it can and will be. I am pleased to have a proven and resolute leader assume the critical position of Chief Operating Officer, thereby securing the mission and saving more lives!” said Janice Whaley, President & CEO, Donor Network West.
Johnson received a Master of Biomedical Sciences & Human Donation Science from the University of Toledo. He graduated from West Texas A&M in Canyon, Texas, with a Bachelor of Science in Nursing. Johnson is certified in organ and tissue recovery through the American Board of Transplant Certification (ABTC).
Donor Network West serves 175 hospitals and more than 13 million people within 100,000 square miles in northern California and Nevada. The organization works in close partnership with its hospitals, families, doctors, nurses, and more than 500 funeral homes, 44 coroners, and medical examiners to connect donors to recipients.