Bowen Health’s Kylie Riecken has been tapped to fill a new executive director role for the northern Indiana health system. Previously serving as Senior County Director, Riecken is now responsible for operations, performance, and furthering community relationships to connect Bowen Health to people in need of health services in Allen County.
“I am thrilled to move into the Allen County Executive Director role,” said Riecken. “My priority will remain our patients, our community, and our staff. I intend to build upon our strong team to move Bowen Health’s strategic objectives forward, keeping our core values of Respect, Integrity, Mission, and Stewardship top of mind.”
Before joining Bowen Health in November of 2023, Kylie served for more than seven years as the System of Care Coordinator in Allen County where she played a pivotal role in the creation of CONNECT Allen County, a “No Wrong Door” community resource access center helping connect people in need to available resources. Prior to that, she worked as an Intake Specialist for a local nonprofit serving troubled children and their families.
“Kylie's vast operational and community experience makes her uniquely qualified for this new role,” says Shannon Hannon, Bowen Health COO. “She knows Allen County, the patients we serve, and seek to serve, and the barriers keeping them from getting help. For nearly 16 years she has been dedicated to those individuals in Allen County and served as a leader and advocate to help ensure that everyone has access to quality healthcare. We’re pleased to promote her to this new critical role that will help more Allen County residents get the care they need.”
“While part of the Allen County team will focus fully on ensuring our internal operations remain top tier, the other part will focus on our community,” Riecken said. “We will aggressively seek out those who need mental and physical health care the most and we will strive to remove all barriers to that care, allowing our patients to live their best lives longer.”
Being nimble and adapting to change quickly has allowed Bowen Health to become the largest community mental health center in the state and in 2020 was one of the first to offer primary care to its patients. Finding new ways to help improve patients’ well-being means retooling or reimagining what services they offer and how they provide them.
“When Bowen Health (then Bowen Center) added primary health care in 2020, we did it because we knew our patients with serious mental illnesses were at risk of having a much shorter lifespan because typically those patients neglect their physical health,” says Dr. Rob Ryan, Bowen Health president and CEO. “We knew if we added medical services they could access during the same visit they see their therapist, that convenience would improve their health outcomes and as a consequence, allow them to live longer, fuller lives. Kylie has been dedicated to the patients we help for a long time, and I know under her leadership, she will help us identify new ways to improve the quality of life for everyone in Allen County.”
