September 18, 2026- Accendra Health, Inc. named Kenneth Gardner-Smith as the Company’s next President and Chief Executive Officer. Gardner-Smith, who has served on the Company’s Board of Directors since March 2022, is expected to assume the role early in the fourth quarter 2026. He will succeed Edward A. Pesicka, who announced his intent to retire in August.
Gardner-Smith brings deep experience running large-scale patient care operations and guiding transformations. He currently serves as Chief Executive Officer of Veritas Veterinary Partners, a national specialty and emergency veterinary platform, where he spearheaded a strategy reset and executive rebuild that delivered double-digit average quarterly revenue growth and significant margin expansion throughout his tenure since 2024. Prior to that, Gardner-Smith served in a variety of operating roles over 13 years at DaVita, including nine years as a senior P&L owner managing $1.5 billion in operations and most recently as a senior executive, where he supported teams across more than 3,000 facilities in 13 countries.
Pesicka will remain in his role of President and CEO until Gardner-Smith assumes the role, at which point he will also retire from the Board of Directors, as previously announced. He will continue to serve as an advisor to Gardner-Smith and the leadership team to ensure a smooth transition. Importantly, the Company expects no disruption to its operations or its ability to serve patients, providers, and partners throughout the transition.
Gardner-Smith will continue to serve on the Accendra Health Board of Directors and the Board’s Executive Committee as a non-independent director and will step down from his roles on the Our People & Culture and Audit Committees.