Sarah Hackenbracht is the President & CEO of the Greater Dayton Area Hospital Association (GDAHA). In her role, she sets the vision and strategy for a dedicated team that the Dayton region’s hospitals, health systems, and health partners throughout 11 counties. GDAHA is an integral regional association for healthcare organizations as their dedicated convener, collaborator, and advocate. By facilitating collective action on a diverse agenda, hospital and healthcare partners work together to improve the overall health and wellbeing of the communities they serve and demonstrate the value of quality care, close to home.
As an Indiana native, Sarah is proud to consider the Dayton region her home. After receiving her Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from Wright State University, she began her career at the Dayton Area Chamber of Commerce working on small business public policy, safety, and healthcare issues before making the transition to healthcare and GDAHA. During her early years at GDAHA, Sarah specialized in workforce, public policy, and communications for the association and completed her Master of Public Administration from the University of Dayton. In 2011, Sarah moved to Cleveland to serve as the Executive Director of the Cuyahoga Health Access Partnership (CHAP) and navigated the implementation of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act before returning to the Dayton area to launch GDAHA’s community-wide advance care planning initiative. Sarah assumed the position of President & CEO for GDAHA in 2019 and led the GDAHA team through the Memorial Day Tornadoes and aftermath of the Oregon District tragedy. The myriad of challenges in 2019 prepared her to be at the forefront of the regional hospital response to COVID-19 in 2020.
Service to the Dayton region is a vital component of GDAHA’s mission and Sarah’s personal commitment to the community. Sarah serves on the Downtown Dayton Partnership Board of Directors, the Dayton Hoopla Local Organizing Committee, the Miami Valley Disaster Recovery Board, and the Advisory Board of the Miami Valley Urban League. She also serves on the Executive Committee of the Conference of Metropolitan Hospital Associations
Throughout her career, she has been recognized as an accomplished community leader. Sarah was honored as one of the Dayton Business Journal’s “Forty Under Forty” in 2010 and included in the Dayton Business Journal’s “Power 50” recognizing female leaders across the Dayton region for the first time in 2020. As a graduate of Leadership Dayton’s Class of 2020, Sarah is continuing to focus on building relationships that will allow her to give back to the community. She was honored to accept the “Leader of the Year” from the Leadership Dayton Alumni Association in 2022. Sarah currently serves as an Honorary Commander for Wright-Patterson Air Force Base to continue strengthening relationships between our military and civilian sectors. Most recently, she joined Wright State University’s Class of 2023 as their commencement speaker where she was awarded an honorary Doctor of Human Letters.
Sarah and her husband, Alden, welcomed their son in 2020. Becoming a mother has allowed Sarah to experience the world with a new perspective and provides more joy than she could have ever expected. Hugo, their cat, has also adapted to his furless little brother and likes having the extra set of hands to pet him while he eats.