Martha’s Vineyard Hospital president Denise Schepici plans to retire at the end of the 2025, after eight years as the head of the Island hospital. 

Ms. Schepici, who has worked in health care for more than four decades, announced Tuesday her intentions to step down on Dec. 31, setting in motion a nationwide search for her replacement. Colleagues praised Ms. Schepici’s leadership at the hospital, saying she was essential in helping the hospital bring more services to Islanders. 

“The hospital has become an incredible place to work under her leadership and a trusted place of care for the community,” Martha’s Vineyard Hospital chief nursing and operations officer Claire Seguin said.

Ms. Schepici was hired by the hospital board in 2017. The former chief administrative officer at the MetroWest Medical Center, she had spent summers on the Vineyard since college and joined the hospital after it had fired its previous CEO.  

Housing for employees has been a big part of the job.

Ray Ewing

Housing for employees has been a big part of the job.

Ray Ewing

The proudest moments of Ms. Schepici’s tenure were when she was able to cultivate confidence within the community and a positive culture among hospital staff.  

“We’re nothing if we don’t have that trust and loyalty [with the community],” she said in an interview with the Gazette. “I’m really proud of the work that we did here, not just me, but my whole team, to open the doors to the community, make people feel and know this was their hospital, and to listen and to make the changes that were necessary to be really visible.”  

During her time as the hospital president, Ms. Schepici navigated the Island’s main health care hub through the Covid-19 pandemic, and helped establish the Navigator Homes project in Edgartown, bringing more long-term care for seniors and housing for staff. 

The project along Edgartown-Vineyard Haven Road includes skilled nursing and rehabilitation care for 66 patients, and 48 units of staff housing. Finding places to live for its hundreds of employees has been one of the biggest challenges for the hospital.

“When I began this role, I never imagined I’d find myself in the housing business,” she said in her retirement announcement. “But watching talented nurses leave because they couldn’t afford to live here was heartbreaking. We also had physician candidates decline positions due to the high cost of living. It was clear something had to be done.”

Denise Schepici stands alongside Gov. Maura Healey, state Rep. Thomas Moakley and state Sen. Julian Cyr.

Ray Ewing

Denise Schepici stands alongside Gov. Maura Healey, state Rep. Thomas Moakley and state Sen. Julian Cyr.

Ray Ewing

Martha’s Vineyard Hospital board of trustees chair Rebecca Haag saw firsthand how Ms. Schepici championed the Navigator Homes project from start to finish.  

“She went to the property owner, [even though the property] wasn’t even for sale, to convince him and his family that this could be a legacy for the Island and for them,” Ms. Haag said. 

That dedication continued once construction started.

“She was there every week in a hard hat to make sure that the project was moving at the pace it needed to, and she raised the $30 million that we needed to make it happen,” Ms. Haag said. 

Ms. Seguin worked in tandem with Ms. Schepici during the pandemic and is proud that many of the hospital’s programs developed during that time still exist, such as a neurology program that provides 24/7 services for patients suffering from a stroke.

“It was an opportunity for us, under a really intense time and microscope, to practice those skill sets that we have, me being very operational and clinical and focused on the protocols and vaccines and treatment, while she could have that outward lens to the community and communication and making sure that we were all working together in a time of such darkness,” she said. 

Ms. Schepici also noted that the hospital has had a growth of resources for patients in the last eight years, including expanded clinical services. Some of these services include an MRI coil for breast imaging and a neurocognitive disorder and a new Alzheimer’s clinic.  

“I’m really, really thrilled that we were bringing on service after service after service,” she said. “That’s particularly rewarding.” 

Ms. Seguin commended Ms. Schepici’s ability to shape the hospital’s long-term vision while emphasizing a high quality of care. 

“She was able to attract me to come work at Martha’s Vineyard Hospital by wanting to advance high-quality care thinking, reimagining models of service,” Ms. Seguin said.  

There have been other changes during Ms. Schepici’s time, including more integration of Mass General Brigham, the hospital’s parent company, into the Vineyard operations. In 2023, Mass General Brigham centralized the management of its six community hospitals, including Martha’s Vineyard Hospital. 

At the time, Ms. Schepici’s title was changed from CEO to president and chief operating officer, though the hospital said there were no practical changes other than the title swap. 

The restructuring was aimed at streamlining costs and improving efficiency. Mass General Brigham said much the same earlier this year, when the parent company had several layoffs throughout its sprawling hospital network.

As Ms. Schepici is set to retire, the hospital continues to consider ways to shore up staff, and deal with rising sea levels that threaten access to the hospital itself. While navigating all of these challenges, Ms. Schepici said she always came to work with patients and her staff at the front of her mind. 

“When you have a culture where the people take care of their own people, you do a better job taking care of patients,” she said. 

Ms. Haag thanked Ms. Schepici for her contributions to the greater Vineyard community.  

“Denise doesn’t just manage with her head. She manages with her heart,” Ms. Haag said. “She is part of this community. She talks to people everywhere. She hears about their trials and tribulations with members of their family and the health challenges.” 

Ms. Schepici is planning to remain on the Vineyard in retirement, and Massachusetts General Brigham and the hospital board of trustees have convened a search committee to find a successor.  

She said she is confident in the hospital team she leaves behind and feels a sense of peace as she draws closer to retirement.  

“My emails are buzzing and my phone is ringing,” Ms. Schepici said. “It’s a very warm set of emails, and I’m just thrilled that people are taking it as well as they are.”