Two strong women are at the forefront of a major industry with leading roles at Conway Regional Health System. Carol Angel, MD, an anesthesiologist, is the chief of staff, and Andrea Woods, JD, is the chair of the Conway Regional Board of Directors.

Dr. Angel is the founder of Conway Anesthesiology Consultants and has been practicing anesthesiology for more than 20 years. Woods, a Conway attorney with Nabholz Construction, has been a member of the board for eight years. She and Angel are entering their second year together in their high-profile leadership roles, having accepted their respective positions in December of 2018.

Conway Regional Health System is governed by a nine-member board of community members who make strategic decisions for the not-for-profit health system. Board membership includes two physicians, Andrew Cole, MD, and Thad Hardin, MD. Other members of the board of directors include Barbara Williams, PhD, RN, Jeff Standridge, Rev. E.C. Maltbia, Tom Poe, Jim Rankin, Jr, and Wayne Cox. As the chief of staff, Dr. Angel represents all physicians on the medical staff.

When Woods and Dr. Angel accepted their roles within the health system, neither could have anticipated a world-wide pandemic. As cases of COVID-19 began to rise in Arkansas, the health system adapted quickly, initiating protocols and establishing innovative ways to best serve its community. The unprecedented time, Woods says, has only strengthened the health system’s mission and calling.

“We are blessed that everyone has the same goal,” she said. “To get through this together.”

The circumstance has also redefined how she views her role within the organization.

“This has been a reminder for me as board chair that the role of the board of directors is strategic. I’m a lawyer, not a healthcare provider,” said Andrea. “As such, I need to step back and let the professionals do what they do best-care for our patients and families.”

Conway Regional President and CEO Matt Troup emphasized the value both Andrea and Dr. Angel bring to the health system, as well as their willingness to serve their community.

“Andrea and Dr. Angel bring immense value to our team at Conway Regional,” said Troup. “As we navigate this unprecedented time, I am grateful for the commitment, dedication, and compassion these two leaders bring to the conversation. As a health system, we have worked diligently to protect the health and safety of our patients, visitors, and staff, and I am proud of how our team has responded to this pandemic with a willingness to serve. At Conway Regional, we are called toward one goal: caring for others. Andrea and Dr. Angel embody that mission.”

Answering the Call

Dr. Angel emphasized that through the pandemic, the health system’s fundamental purpose has not waivered. “Our mission has continued to be the same, to provide excellent care to all of our patients,” she said.

She credits early decision making by Conway Regional’s leadership for helping the health system get ahead of the crisis. 

She explained, “Early on, decisions were made by physicians, medical staff, our CEO Matt Troup, and the executive leadership team.” These decisions enabled the health system to best ensure the health and safety of its patients, visitors, and staff.

These early changes included establishing one of the first drive-thru testing areas in the state for COVID-19, launching telemedicine, creating a community call center, and providing employees with wellness offerings such as a relaxation room, free meals during their shift, and free daycare.

Aligned with the health system’s values, the calling to serve is prominent in the lives of both leaders.

In addition to their key positions at Conway Regional, Dr. Carol Angel and Andrea Woods serve as role models for women throughout Faulkner County.

Q: How have your backgrounds helped prepare you for this level of leadership responsibility?
Woods: “I have served on the holding company board of directors for Nabholz Construction as well as on the boards of a number of not-for-profit organizations. Being able to learn from leaders like (former health system board chairs) Barbara Williams, Pastor EC Maltbia, and others have helped me appreciate having the right temperament on the Conway Regional board. I appreciate the grace and focus they have displayed.”
Dr. Angel: “As I have progressed in my career as a physician, I have noticed more ways I could get involved to make improvements. I was asked to be on the Physician Leadership Council and Medical Executive Committee, and the more experience I have earned, the more I have had to contribute.

Q: Can you describe your roles as chief of staff and chair of the board?
Dr. Angel: “My role as chief of staff is to co-lead because we consider this a physician-led hospital. When there are areas where we have to have more dialogue with physicians, I take part. If there are areas of conflict, I help to mediate; when there are opportunities for growth, I give my perspective. The goal is always to advance our medical care in Faulkner County.”
Woods: “My role as chair of the board is to facilitate the making of decisions that will benefit our community and everyone who serves the hospital. The board provides a variety of strategic perspectives since we all come from diverse backgrounds. Current challenges may require that we dig deep and push forward to make change, and sometimes those changes are difficult. It may require that we step back a bit to make sure we are well grounded and are not losing sight of the goal: quality, compassionate health care for everyone we serve.”
Woods added that she is driven to make sure that “we keep the feeling of family; that we remember who we are.” She explained, “One of my best memories of being a patient here, if you can have a best memory of being in a hospital, is someone from housekeeping stepping in to help me when it was not in their job description. Our team members give. It’s just part of their nature.”

Q: What is it like to manage the expectations and meet the challenges?
Woods: “Looking back eight years ago, the health system was in such a different place.  We were hunting down opportunities to make sure we could survive and thrive, making Conway Regional the premier health system of choice for physicians and health care professionals. Now we are blessed to have opportunities coming to us. There have been so many amazing opportunities, but it takes time, review, and vetting.”
Dr. Angel: “I didn’t know what it was going to be like, but one of the things that surprised me is how the leadership team works together to form the strategy. I am pleasantly surprised that the goals we have set have been met so quickly.” She cited how quickly the health system adopted an ACM for primary care doctors. “We started with a plan, it was executed, and put into place. I am very impressed by that and I am proud to be part of it,” she said.

Woods also cherishes the meaningful moments she has experienced in her role. She recalled voting to join the ARSAVES stroke program that is hosted by UAMS. “When I was shadowing in the Emergency Department, I got to look into a patient’s eyes and know that this program saved his life. It’s awesome and humbling to be around people who really do save lives every day.”

  Q: Do you consider yourselves to be role models, and glass-ceiling breakers for women in health care?
Woods: “At Conway Regional there are amazing women in a multitude of leadership roles. There were several women trailblazers here long before I arrived. You can’t walk the halls of the hospital without seeing strong female role models at every level of the organization.”
Dr. Angel: “I have been told that the younger female doctors really look up to a female chief of staff. In that they feel that my role is as a trailblazer for them, a game changer; I am honored to be a part of it.”

 Q: How do you strike a work-life balance? 
Woods: “I don’t think there is any such thing as a true balance. I like the analogy that life is like standing up in a canoe. Initially you may feel steady but pretty soon the waves will come. You don’t know when, where, or how rocky it will be. It’s more about finding a way to be exhilarated by the experience. If you have good people in the boat with you, it’ll all work out.”

She added, “And it’s not like we do it all by ourselves. Team members fill in and we have understanding spouses.” Dr. Angel is married to Mike Angel, an attorney, and Andrea Woods husband is Jeff Woods, a professor at Arkansas Tech University.

 Q: What are some of the surprises and challenges?
Dr. Angel: “The whole strategy to execution process has been a pleasant surprise.”
Woods:  “Taking on the management of Dardanelle Regional Medical Center is unique, and I look at this relationship as one of many ways Conway Regional expresses its values. We are a not-for-profit and have a clear mission to serve.”

 She also cited the beginning of a 60-million-dollar capital project that includes a new medical office building, a new critical care unit, and the expansion of the Greenbrier Family Medicine Clinic. “That’s one of the best things we’ve done for the hospital since I have been on the board,” Woods said. “I’m so excited to see the hospital investing in itself. These projects will make sure our physicians and health care professionals have what they need, and they will help us continue to grow in our service lines and help people closer to home.”

  Q: What advice do you have for young women who are aspiring to leadership roles?
Woods: “Remember, the little bumps along the way are not walls. You can handle any challenge.”
Dr. Angel: “Don’t be insecure or intimidated, rise up and go for it!”

(Originally published in AY magazine)