Dr. Tucker comes to RWJ from Lyndon B. Johnson General Hospital (LBJ), a 328- licensed bed county hospital in Houston, Texas, where he served as Chief Administrator. In addition to this role, Dr. Tucker served as Executive Vice President for the Harris Health System in Houston.
“We’re both pleased and excited that Jessie has joined us at RWJ,” says Michael Antoniades, President and Chief Executive Officer for RWJ. “He brings a wealth of knowledge and healthcare leadership experience spanning more than 26 years in a broad range of settings. Throughout his career, Jessie has demonstrated a proven ability to lead organizations that deliver the highest quality care in a cost-efficient manner. He will play a central role in helping us seamlessly integrate the services we provide at our academic medical center, in partnership with faculty doctors and private physicians in the community, with those of RWJBarnabas Health System as we broaden and increase access to affordable, quality health care services for the diverse communities we serve.”
Dr. Tucker adds, “I am excited to join the RWJ family and work with our team as we begin an historic chapter as part of RWJBarnabas Health. The RWJ name is known nationally for excellence in academic medicine and I look forward working closely with our partners on our academic medical campus to expand our hospital’s reputation for providing exceptional care.”
A retired Lieutenant Colonel with 24 years of service in the U.S. Army, Dr. Tucker also served as chief operating officer for the Womack Army Medical Center in Fort Bragg, North Carolina; chief executive officer and chief operating officer for Fox Army Health Center in Redstone Arsenal, Alabama; chief executive officer, Kleber Army Health Clinic, Kaiserslautern, Germany; and chief operating officer/chief financial officer for the Army Southeast Regional Dental Command in Fort Gordon, Georgia. He also is a former assistant professor and associate professor at Baylor University in Fort Sam Houston, Texas.
Dr. Tucker obtained a bachelor’s degree in business administration from the University of South Carolina; a master’s degree in administrative management from Bowie State University; a master’s in business administration from Troy State University; and a doctorate degree in administration-health services from the University of Alabama at Birmingham. He completed a two-year fellowship with the Accrediting Commission on Education for Health Services Administration and a National Association of Public Hospitals and Health Systems Fellowship. He is also a Fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives (FACHE), a certified Six Sigma Black Belt and a certified financial manager.
He has been honored with the American College of Healthcare Executives’ Exemplary Service Award, the University of Alabama at Birmingham’s School of Health Professions’ Fab 40 Outstanding Alumni, the Robert S. Hudgens Memorial Award for Young Healthcare Executive of the Year and the Legion of Merit Award upon retirement from the U.S. Army.About RWJBarnabas Health
RWJBarnabas Health is the most comprehensive health care delivery system in New Jersey, treating over 3 million patients a year. The system includes eleven acute care hospitals – Clara Maass Medical Center in Belleville, Community Medical Center in Toms River, Jersey City Medical Center in Jersey City, Monmouth Medical Center in Long Branch, Monmouth Medical Center Southern Campus in Lakewood, Newark Beth Israel Medical Center in Newark, RWJUH in New Brunswick and Somerville, RWJUH- Hamilton, RWJUH- Rahway and Saint Barnabas Medical Center in Livingston; three acute care children’s hospitals and a leading pediatric rehabilitation hospital (Children’s Specialized Hospital), a freestanding 100-bed behavioral health center, ambulatory care centers, geriatric centers, the state’s largest behavioral health network, comprehensive home care and hospice programs, fitness and wellness centers, retail pharmacy services, a medical group, multi-site imaging centers and four accountable care organizations.
RWJBarnabas Health is New Jersey’s second largest private employer – with more than 32,000 employees, 9,000 physicians and 1,000 residents and interns – and routinely captures national awards for its outstanding quality and safety.
About Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital
Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital (RWJUH) is a 965-bed academic medical center with campuses in New Brunswick and Somerville, N.J. Its Centers of Excellence include cardiovascular care from minimally invasive heart surgery to transplantation, cancer care, stroke care, neuroscience, joint replacement, and women’s and children’s care, including The Bristol-Myers Squibb Children’s Hospital at RWJUH(www.bmsch.org). As the flagship Cancer Hospital of Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey and the principal teaching hospital of Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School in New Brunswick, RWJUH is an innovative leader in advancing state-of-the-art care.
As a Level I Trauma Center and the first Pediatric Trauma Center in the state, RWJUH’s New Brunswick campus serves as a national resource in its ground-breaking approaches to emergency preparedness.
RWJUH has been ranked among the best hospitals in America by U.S. News & World Report seven times and has been selected by the publication as a high performing hospital in numerous specialties. The Bristol-Myers Squibb Children’s Hospital at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital has been ranked among the best hospitals in America by U.S. News & World Report for three consecutive years.
Both the New Brunswick and Somerset campuses have earned significant national recognition for clinical quality and patient safety, including the prestigious Magnet® Award for Nursing Excellence and “Most Wired” designation by Hospitals and Health Networks magazine. The Joint Commission and the New Jersey Department of Health and Senior Services have designated the New Brunswick Campus as a Comprehensive Stroke Center and the Somerset Campus as a Primary Stroke Center.
The American College of Surgeons’ Commission on Cancer has rated RWJUH New Brunswick among the nation’s best comprehensive cancer centers and designated the Steeplechase Cancer Center at RWJUH Somerset as a Comprehensive Community Cancer Center. The Joint Surgery Center at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital Somerset has earned the Joint Commission’s Gold Seal of Approval for total knee and total hip replacement surgery.
Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital is ranked no. 19 in Diversity MBA Magazine’s 2015 rankings for “50 Out Front Companies for Diversity Leadership: Best Places for Women & Diverse Managers to Work” and also is recognized by the magazine in its “Top 10 Best in Class: Succession Planning and Accountability.”
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