Providence, RI – Friday, March 6, 2026 – Care New England today announced the appointment of Erin Yale as President and Chief Operating Officer of Women & Infants Hospital, effective April 13, 2026.
A highly accomplished healthcare executive, Yale brings more than 25 years of experience leading complex academic and community health systems. She joins Women & Infants from Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital–Plymouth, where she has served as Chief Operating Officer since 2024. During her tenure, she strengthened financial and operational performance across diverse service areas, co-led the launch of Epic, and advanced the hospital’s strategic alignment with BI Lahey Health.
Previously, Yale held progressive leadership roles during a decade at Children’s Wisconsin, a leading pediatric academic health system. There, she led large, multidisciplinary clinical service lines—including surgical, diagnostic, and therapeutic services—while guiding major capital expansion initiatives, regulatory achievements, and operational transformation efforts.
“Erin’s career reflects deep expertise in service-line development, physician partnership, system integration, and performance improvement, as well as a steadfast commitment to clinical excellence, innovation, and collaboration,” said Dr. Michael Wagner, President and CEO of Care New England (CNE). “We look forward to her leadership in building upon Women & Infants’ legacy as the region’s premiere provider of women’s and newborn care, while expanding access, strengthening outcomes, and advancing academic medicine and research across Rhode Island and beyond.”
As President and COO of Women and Infants Hospital, one of the nation’s only free-standing women’s hospitals, Yale will focus on advancing clinical and operational excellence while driving strategic growth in women and children’s health across the region. In close collaboration with system and community partners, she will also advance innovative strategies that reinforce the hospital’s national prominence in clinical care, research, and academic medicine while deepening WIH’s impact throughout the southern New England region. Women & Infants Hospital maintains strong academic and clinical partnerships, including with Brown University, and collaborates across disciplines to deliver comprehensive care in obstetrics, gynecologic oncology, reproductive endocrinology, behavioral health, and more.
“I am excited to join Women & Infants Hospital, one of the nation’s leading academic medical centers solely focused on women’s health at such an exciting moment in its history,” said Yale. “I look forward to working alongside our exceptional physicians, nurses, researchers, and community partners — including our longstanding collaboration with Brown University — to build on the hospital’s national leadership in clinical care, research, and academic medicine, and to ensure that every patient and family we serve experiences the highest quality care.”
About Women & Infants Hospital
Women & Infants Hospital of Rhode Island, a Care New England hospital, is one of the nation’s leading specialty hospitals for women and newborns. A major teaching affiliate of The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University for obstetrics, gynecology, and newborn pediatrics, as well as a number of specialized programs in women’s medicine, Women & Infants is the ninth largest stand-alone obstetrical service in the country and the largest in New England with approximately 8,700 deliveries per year. Women & Infants is a Designated Baby-Friendly® USA hospital and was recently ranked by Newsweek as one of America's Best Maternity Hospitals in 2024. The Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology ranked 11 in U.S. News & World Report’s 2019 Best Medical Schools specialty ranking.
Women & Infants has been designated as a Breast Imaging Center of Excellence by the American College of Radiography; a Center of Excellence in Minimally Invasive Gynecology; and a Neonatal Resource Services Center of Excellence. It is one of the largest and most prestigious research facilities in high-risk and normal obstetrics, gynecology, and newborn pediatrics in the nation, and is a member of the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) Maternal Fetal Medicine Units Network, and Pelvic Floors Disorders Network, as well as the National Cancer Institute’s Gynecologic Oncology Group.
About Care New England
Care New England Health System is a trusted organization advancing the future of care through leading medical research, nationally recognized clinical services, and innovative programs. As one connected system, CNE attracts top, specially trained physicians and clinicians, fosters collaboration across disciplines, and leads meaningful conversations about health, wellness, and end-of-life care.
Founded in 1996, Care New England brings together a network of respected organizations working together to better serve patients and the community. The system includes Butler Hospital, Kent Hospital, Women & Infants Hospital, Care New England Medical Group, VNA Home Health and Hospice, The Providence Center, and Integra, a certified accountable care organization (ACO). Care New England includes 749 licensed beds and 102 infant bassinets. Care New England is proud of its strong commitment to education and research, and through Butler, Kent, and Women & Infants Hospitals, maintains a teaching and research affiliation with The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University. Kent is also a teaching affiliate of the University of New England College of Osteopathic Medicine.
Copyright © 2026 Care New England Health System