Kelsey Mellard, M.P.A., is the CEO and Co-founder of Sitka.  Prior to founding Sitka, Kelsey lead Health System Integration for Honor Homecare. Prior to joining the Honor team in 2013, she lead the development of the Post-Acute Care Center for Research (PACCR), which she served as its Executive Director. Prior to this, she was Vice President of Partnership Marketing and Policy at naviHealth, and a launched their Washington, D.C. office. She has also been the Vice President of Policy for Health Services at UnitedHealth Group and worked closely with Optum. She has also been Special Assistant the Director of the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation (CMMI) where, in addition to helping establish the organization, she also served on the Steering Committee for its Health Care Innovation Summit, engineering its first-ever public-private event.

Before working with the Federal Government, Kelsey worked directly within the healthcare delivery system as a consultant to a variety of hospital systems. She has also served as a member of the Advisory Board Company, and as an Administrative Fellow at Children’s Mercy Hospital and Clinic.

Kelsey began her career at the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation working on the StateHealthFacts.org team. She attended Winona State University, where she received a Bachelor’s of Science Degree in Community Health, and received her Master’s degree in Public Administration from the University of Kansas. Currently, she also serves as an adjunct faculty member at Winona State University in the College of Nursing and Health Services.

Involvement with AcademyHealth:

  • Co-Chair - 2018 Health Datapalooza

 

Authored by Kelsey Mellard, M.P.A.