OLEAN, NY – Upper Allegheny Health System (UAHS), parent company of Bradford Regional Medical Center (BRMC) and Olean General Hospital (OGH), announce the appointment of Jennifer Ruggles, MSN, RN as chief nursing officer and Scott Bonderoff, MBA as the chief operating officer.  Both Ruggles and Bonderoff were serving as interim CNO and interim COO respectively, but will remove the interim from their titles.

Jennifer Ruggles is a lifelong resident of the Olean area.  She has worked as a nurse in various capacities at both BRMC and OGH since her start in 2003 at UAHS. Her continued efforts to have OGH be a designated Primary Care Stroke Center has been exemplary and she played an essential role in nursing leadership throughout the pandemic.

“I’m looking forward to continuing to work along Jennifer in her new long-term role as she continues to strive for excellence with nursing recruitment and retention initiatives, improving our quality of care and patient experience, and promoting a positive, transparent work culture for our team members,” said Jill Owens, MD, president, BRMC, OGH.  “Her appointment will have cascading valuable effects on the rest of our administrative team as we continue to adapt and evolve our local healthcare system.”

Ruggles’ education and experience are apposite for the chief nursing officer position as she transitions from her current role as interim chief nursing officer and the associate director of nursing within the organization.  She received her associate’s in nursing from Jamestown Community College in Olean, her bachelor’s in nursing from Daemen College in Buffalo, and her master’s in nursing education from the University of Phoenix.  Her experience includes over a decade spent in supervisory and managerial nursing roles at Olean General Hospital.

Scott Bonderoff, MBA, who stepped into the role as UAHS interim chief operating officer in October 2022 will be transitioning into the chief operating officer position permanently. 

“In the short time that Scott has been in the interim COO position, he has managed to help UAHS make strides in the right direction financially,” said Dr. Owens. “His skillset and experience are complementary to that of the rest of our administrative team.  He will continue to help us shoot for our goals and driving our financial initiatives.”

Bonderoff has over 30 years of experience in healthcare in various capacities.  Originally from Cooperstown, NY, he spent the last 20 years working for the Bassett Healthcare Network, a network that oversees 34 health centers, 14 school-based centers, 6 hospitals, 3 cancer treatment centers, nursing and home health services, and a variety of other healthcare related services including the Bassett Medical Group.  His roles included president of one of their critical access hospitals and network vice president of clinical support services.  

Bonderoff earned his bachelor’s degree in Psychology from SUNY College at Oneonta in Oneonta, NY and his master’s degree in business administration at Binghamton University in Binghamton, NY.  He has been member of the Medical Group Management Association and the American College of Healthcare Executives.

“I’m excited to see our administration continue working together with our team members initiating positive changes throughout our organization,” Dr. Owens said.  “We’ve started to see great things happen and a cultural shift with our team members.  Healthcare will continue to face obstacles but I’ve stacked my team with experts in their field who are up for the challenges ahead.”

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