Karen Wolk Feinstein, PhD
Jewish Healthcare Foundation
President and CEO
Dr. Feinstein is President and Chief Executive Officer of the Jewish Healthcare Foundation (JHF) and its three supporting organizations, the Pittsburgh Regional Health Initiative (PRHI), Health Careers Futures (HCF), and the Women’s Health Activist Movement (WHAMglobal). Together they perform a unique mix of grant making, research, teaching, coaching, and project management.
Under her leadership, JHF and PRHI have become a leading voice in patient safety, healthcare quality, and related workforce issues. When Dr. Feinstein founded PRHI, it was among the nation’s first regional multi-stakeholder quality coalitions devoted simultaneously to advancing efficiency, best practices, and safety by applying industrial engineering principles. Dr. Feinstein also founded HCF to assist the region’s healthcare industry in attracting, preparing, and retaining employees, and was a leader in the formation of the Network for Regional Healthcare Improvement (NRHI), a national coalition of Regional Health Improvement Collaboratives. Widely regarded as a leader in healthcare quality improvement, Dr. Feinstein frequently presents at national and international conferences. She presented at the 2016 TEDxBeaconStreet event to a global audience.
Dr. Feinstein is a past President of Grantmakers In Health and Grantmakers of Western PA, and co-chair of the Pennsylvania Health Funders Collaborative. She serves on many boards and executive committees, including the Network for Regional Health Improvement (which she founded), the United Way, and the Allegheny Conference on Community Development. She serves on the national board of the National Board of Medical Examiners, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Health Research Advisory Committee, Boards of Visitors of the University of Pittsburgh’s Graduate School of Public Health and the University Center for International Studies, UPMC Presbyterian/Shadyside Board of Directors, and the UPMC system-wide Patient Care Committee.
Dr. Feinstein has served on the faculties of Boston College, Carnegie Mellon University, and the University of Pittsburgh. She is the author of numerous regional and national publications on quality and safety. In 2015, she was named Pittsburgher of the Year by Pittsburgh Magazine. She earned her bachelor’s degree in American History at Brown University, her master's in Social Planning at Boston College, and her doctorate at the Heller School for Social Policy and Management at Brandeis University. Dr. Feinstein has Honorary Doctorates from Chatham and Carlow Universities.