Darrin L. Johnson, MD
President

Paul B. Tabereaux, MD
Vice-President

Jessica S. Branscome, MD
Secretary

Medical Executive Committee

• Darrin L. Johnson, MD, President
• Paul B. Tabereaux, MD, Vice-President
• Jessica S. Branscome, MD, Secretary
• Casey C. Smith, MD Department of Anesthesiology
• Melanie B. Barnhart, MD, Department of Emergency Medicine
• Rinkesh Patel, MD, Department of Family Medicine
• Sudheer R. Kantharajpur, MD, Department of Medicine
• Karen L. Samples, MD, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology
• Aimee League, MD, Department of Pathology
• Emily W. Ladner, MD, Department of Pediatrics
• Donna J. Scott, MD, Department of Psychiatry
• Austin R. Faulkner, MD, Department of Radiology
• Rhett B. Murray, MD, Department of Surgery
• Joseph W. Clark, MD, Orthopedic Services
• Jeffery S. Johnson, MD, Madison Hospital
• Joseph L. Randall, MD, Ambulatory/Primary Care

Institutional Review Committee

The Institutional Review Committee is a committee of the Health Care Authority of the City of Huntsville. It is empowered by the Authority to review, evaluate, approve or disapprove any and all drugs, devices, procedures or studies for use on human subjects, which are considered to be experimental. It is also the responsibility of the Committee to provide administrative oversight to insure that procedures designed for the protection of patient rights are being effectively applied.

The Institutional Review Committee is comprised of 12 members (and alternatives) of various backgrounds and disciplines, including lay members from the community, medical staff physicians and hospital employees.

For further information regarding the Institutional Review Committee, please contact Allison Greene, IRC Coordinator, at (256) 265-6990 or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Committee Members

• Joe Campbell, HH Health System Chief Legal Officer
• Robert W. Chappell, Jr., MD, HH Health System Chief Medical Officer/Chief Quality Officer
• John B. Cox, MD, Chair, Ophthalmologist
• Marla Daves, MD, Pediatric Hematology-Oncology, St. Jude Clinic Affiliate Clinic at Huntsville Hospital for Women & Children
• James C. Gilbert, MD, Pediatric Surgeon
• W. Herbert Haught, MD, Cardiologist, HH Heart Center, LLC
• Haley Hoy, PhD, Professor, UAH
• Kaneesha McNeely, MSN, RN, OCN, Nursing Administration
• Gregg Knowles, PharmD, Pharmacy
• Marshall Schreeder, MD, Hematologist/Medical Oncologist, Clearview Cancer Institute
• Rev. Murray Wilton, PhD, Clergy
• Charles Wyman, PhD, Consultant, Electrical Engineer

Alternates

• Kenneth Boley, PharmD, Pharmacy
• J. Clark Pendergrass, Vice President of Legal Services
• Jonathan White, MD, Vice President of Medical Affairs
• Arin Zapf, RN, Nursing Administration

The hospital is governed by the Health Care Authority of the City of Huntsville, an eleven-member volunteer board, nine of whom are appointed by the Huntsville City Council and two internally. Alabama law permits the Authority to submit a list of nominees for consideration for appointment following extensive interviews of prospective candidates. The appointment process ensures that the best interests of the community are represented by the board.

Mike Goodman
Chairman

Amit Arora, MD
Vice-Chairman

Frank Caprio
Secretary-Treasurer

Philip W. Bentley, Jr.

Jim Bolte

Kerry Fehrenbach

Janice Johnson

Tharon Honeycutt

Michael McFadden, MD

Beth Richardson

Roy Rollings

There are no higher priorities at Huntsville Hospital than providing quality care and excellent service to our patients and their families. Our efforts are evaluated and confirmed by several outside organizations and agencies. Among our recent certifications, recognitions and awards are:

• Full accreditation by The Joint Commission
• Named the best hospital in North Alabama, number two hospital in the state and rated "High Performing" in 10 clinical areas -- hip replacement, knee replacement, heart attack, heart failure, heart bypass surgery, aortic valve surgery, colon cancer surgery, gynecological surgery, Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) and leukemia, lymphoma and myeloma -- for 2024-25 by U.S. News and World Report
• Named "America's Best-In-State-Employers" by Forbes, 2024
• Newsweek named Huntsville Hospital for Women & Children among “America’s Best Maternity Hospitals,” 2024
• Healthgrades recognized Huntsville Hospital for the following clinical achievements:
  
  • America's 50 Best Cardiac Surgery  for 7 years in a row (2015-2021)
  • Five-Star Distinction for Coronary Bypass Surgery for 14 years in a row (2008-2021)
  • Cardiac Surgery Excellence Award (2014-2021)
  • Five-Star Distinction for Defibrillator Procedures (2020-2021)
  • Five-Star Distinction for Repair of Abdominal Aorta (2021)
  • Five-Star Distinction for Spinal Fusion Surgery for 3 years in a row (2017-2019)
  • Five-Star Distinction for Total Knee Replacement in 2019
• Certified as a Primary Stroke Center by the American Stroke Association
• Recognition by the American Heart and Stroke Associations for our implementation of the Get With The Guidelines program in the treatment of stroke, heart attack,heart failure patients, and patients who experience in-hospital cardiac arrest
• Named by Becker’s Review as “One of the Top 100 Hospitals in the Nation with Great Heart Programs”
• One of two hospitals in Alabama given the highest rating for knee replacement surgery by Consumer Reports magazine
• Awarded Blue Cross Blue Shield’s Blue Distinction Center+ recognition for cardiac care, knee and hip replacement, spine surgery, bariatric surgery (gastric band and gastric stapling) and maternity care programs
• Perfect scores on the inspections of the Breast Centers at Huntsville Hospital and Madison Hospital
• Near perfect scores in the evaluation of the Laboratory, one of the largest and most technologically advanced laboratories in the U.S., by the College of American Pathology  
• First in Alabama to be awarded advanced certification with The Joint Commission's Gold Seal of Approval™ for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) program
• Named 150 Great Places to Work in Healthcare by Beckers Healthcare
• Earned Huntsville Best Place for Working Parents^® business designation from The Best Place for Working Parents^®
• Certified by the American Association of Cardiovascular and Pulmonary Rehabilitation (AACVPR)