Mary K. Wakefield
Current Position: Administrator, Health Resources and Services Administration (since February, 2009)
Boss: Kathleen Sebelius, Secretary, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
Why She Matters
Mary Wakefield was tapped by President Obama to head the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA). HRSA is a division of Health and Human Services that provides primary health care to 24 million people living in rural and urban communities that don’t have access to basic health services.
As head of HRSA, Wakefield oversees a $7.5 billion agency that funds 3,000 grant recipients in 80 different programs. She also administers $2.5 billion in Recovery Act funds to expand the nation’s health care system and address workforce shortages in the health professions.
A native of Devils Lake, N.D., she is a nationally recognized expert on rural health.
Path to Power
Mary Katherine Wakefield grew up in Devils Lake, N.D., the second youngest of eight children. Her father ran a general aviation business.
She received her bachelor’s degree in nursing at the University of Mary in Bismarck in 1976 while working at Mercy Hospital. In 1978, she received a master’s degree in nursing from the University of Texas at Austin followed by a doctorate degree in philosophy in 1985.
She worked for 11 years in clinical nursing in Texas and North Dakota – primarily in intensive care and medical surgical units. She also taught nursing courses at the University of North Dakota.
In 1987, she brought her career to Capitol Hill, joining the staff of Sen. Quentin Burdick (D-ND) as a legislative and administrative assistant. From 1993 to 1996, she was the chief of staff for Sen. Kent Conrad (D-ND).
In 1996, Wakefield became a professor in the graduate nursing program at George Mason University in Fairfax, Va., where she also served as director of the Center for Health Policy, Research and Ethics until 2001.
In the same year, Wakefield resumed her teaching career at the University of North Dakota as the associate dean for rural health at the School of Medicine and Health Sciences. She was also the director and a professor of the Center for Rural Health.
In March 2009, President Obama appointed her administrator of Health Resources and Services Administration.
In Her Own Words
“There’s nothing that makes you sleep better than helping someone who was stressed, had pain or is suffering from a severe illness. I also recognize that one can influence not just sick patients but 600,000 patients and 6 million by helping deploy services effectively and efficiently through administration.” Mary Wakefield, May 26, 2010 interview
The Issues
Health Workforce
HRSA caters to American communities that are underserved or are experiencing a shortage of health care professionals. The agency addresses workforce shortages through scholarship programs, student loan repayment contracts and grants to colleges and universities.
Wakefield said two-thirds to three-quarters of underserved areas are in rural America.
Traveling 60 to 80 miles to a doctor impedes the well-being of older, and sicker, populations.
“It’s one thing when you’re 25 or 35,” said Brad Gibbens, Wakefield’s former colleague. “There are people living out there who are 85.”
Expanding the rural medical workforce was something Wakefield worked on at the University of North Dakota. She increased the number of staff members at the Center for Rural Health from eight employees to 32. Wakefield also nearly tripled the operating budget to $4.9 million and expanded the Center’s active research projects from seven to 24.
The Health Care and Education Affordability Act of 2010 will provide $11 billion for underserved areas.
“We’ll see an expansion of sites and services in the next five years that will allow us to serve millions of individuals,” Wakefield said.
Rural Health
HRSA supports rural hospitals, clinics and emergency medical departments — and funds the development and adoption of new technologies, such as telehealth, that address age-old rural health dilemmas.
Wakefield’s nursing experience impacts her administrative work.
“When I have conversations about programs and policies, I do it with the filter of seeing on front lines the impact that access to health care services has on the health and well-being for individuals, families and communities,” Wakefield said.
While at the University of North Dakota, Wakefield took a serious look at the issue of quality health care in rural communities.
Her experiences in providing health care allowed her to set those standards, said Gibbens. Wakefield has also stayed close to her rural roots.
“She never forgets that she grew up in a small town in North Dakota,” he said. “She has the opportunity to meet with senators, meetings with Gore. For a North Dakota person, that’s pretty hifalutin stuff. But she occasionally takes the Greyhound to stay real and stay in touch with her roots.”
The Network
Wakefield has worked with Nancy-Ann DeParle, director of the White House Office of Health Reform and Dr. Carolyn Clancy in AHRQ in recent years through boards, committees and commissions.
Wakefield has also served on the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission. She was the chair of the National Advisory Council to the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, a member of President Clinton’s Advisory Commission on Consumer Protection and Quality in the Health Care Industry and a member of the National Advisory Committee to HRSA’s Office of Rural Health Policy.
At a Glance
Current Position: Administrator, Health Resources and Services Administration, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (since February 2009).
Career History: University of North Dakota: Associate Dean for Rural Health at the School of Medicine and Health Sciences; tenured professor and director, Center for Rural Health (2001 to 2009); Fellow in the American Academy of Nursing and elected to the Institute of Medicine of the National Academies (2004); Director, Center for Health Policy, Research and Ethics, George Mason University, Fairfax, Va. (1996 to 2001); Chief of Staff, Senator Kent Conrad (D-ND) (1993 to 1996); Administrative and Legislative Assistant, Senator Quentin Burdick (D-ND) (1987 to 1992); practicing nurse and nursing instructor (1975-1987).
Hometown: Devils Lake, ND
Alma Mater: University of Texas at Austin, PhD (1985); Master of Science in Nursing (1978);
University of Mary – Bismarck, ND, Bachelor of Science in Nursing (1976)
Spouse: Dr. Charles Christianson
Office: Health Resources and Services Administration?5600 Fishers Lane Rockville, MD 20857 1-888-275-4772 (1-888-ASK-HRSA) comments@hrsa.gov