Leading with Heart

New Chief Operating Officer at MUSC has a deeply personal connection to healthcare

By Jenny Peterson

Richard “Rick” Hundorfean is no stranger to hospital corridors. His career as an industrial engineer working on efficiency systems led him to work at large hospital systems, including the Cleveland Clinic in Ohio, where he is from, and now the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC) where he is the newly-appointed Chief Operating Officer.

Yet, his experience in hospitals is not just from the administrative side; it’s also from the patient side. When his wife Jamie was pregnant, it was discovered in utero that their son, Ricky, had a congenital heart defect, possibly a genetic condition, and would most likely require complex open-heart surgery immediately after birth.

Prior to his birth at Boston Children’s Hospital, Ricky underwent a fetal intervention in utero at just 26 weeks’ gestation. This innovative new procedure (a fetal aortic valvulopasty) changed the trajectory of Ricky’s developing heart, allowing better blood flow to reach his small left ventricle and increase its growth. Baby Ricky was born in early October of 2022 and underwent another innovative procedure at just three days old. This new approach gave Ricky time to grow and adjust to life outside the womb, delaying his open-heart surgery until he turned eight months old.

The focus of his surgery was to remove the abundant amount of scar tissue present from the time his left ventricle wasn’t receiving proper blood flow with the hopes it could grow to a normal size and function without it.

Thanks to these innovations in healthcare, Ricky, now two years old, is able to live similarly to any other two-year-old.

“It’s a totally different experience in healthcare when things impact you directly, especially when you're having your first child. You're learning how to be new parents and care for a new baby with a heart condition,” Hundorfean said.

Hundorfean and his family moved to Charleston in 2021 when he took a job as Chief Executive Officer of the MUSC Health Rehabilitation Hospital, an affiliate of Encompass Health, in North Charleston. The role was a natural fit with his background running clinical healthcare divisions in Ohio.

“We loved Ohio, but it was time for a change, and the warmer weather and the Charleston community was attractive,” he said.

Another important benefit was that Ricky was able to get excellent healthcare at the MUSC Shawn Jenkins Children's Hospital.

After a few months in the Lowcountry, Hundorfean was presented with a volunteer opportunity for a cause very close to his heart. He got a phone call from the local American Heart Association office in Charleston about his interest in joining an executive leadership team helping with fundraising. No one at the time knew about his personal connection to the mission.

“They said, ‘We found out that you're the new CEO of the rehab hospital and we’d love for you to be on the executive leadership team. Would you be interested?’”

Hundorfean recalls saying, "I'm actually in the parking lot at Boston Children's Hospital about to take my son into the hospital for open heart surgery."

He adds, "Long story short, my answer was yes."

This year marks Hundorfean’s second year as chairman of the American Heart Association’s Lowcountry Heart Walk, a three-mile walk and event that starts and ends at the Riverdogs Stadium to be held on Feb. 22.

It’s a major fundraising event that helps provide awareness of heart conditions and supports heart research to improve the outcomes and the quality of life for people like young Ricky.

‘Unconventional’ Career Route

Hundorfean notes that his foray into the healthcare industry was “unconventional” for an industrial manufacturing and systems engineer.

He was inspired by his mother who spent her career as a healthcare executive, working in several roles and serving as the CEO of Allegheny Health Network in Pittsburgh.

He started in an executive role overseeing a pain management clinical division in Cleveland, eventually overseeing 18 site locations, then moved to running a neurosciences institute and later was tasked with starting a new pain management and spine institute, overseeing operations of 47 sites.

His day-to-day at MUSC can be likened to that of a hands-on project manager, problem-solving processes for all levels of a healthcare system, from department requests in medical areas, food service, building maintenance, even parking garage operations.

“In the role, it’s critical to have somebody who's a good relationship builder and a really good communicator,” Hundorfean said.

Hope Floats

A long-term prognosis for Ricky is difficult to predict, but Hundorfean is hopeful that advancements in technology and research will help increase the survival rate for Ricky and those affected by heart conditions.

“At his last procedure, the doctors told us this is the first time in history that the series of interventions Ricky has had has ever been done. From his fetal intervention, to delaying the necessity for open heart until he was a much stronger eight-month-old with the interventional catheterization, to the follow up they’ve done, Ricky is truly a trailblazer— the cutest trailblazer you’ve ever seen,” Hundorfean said.

Despite his condition, Ricky still gets to do all the “normal little boy stuff.”

“My wife keeps him busy and takes him to all kinds of fun classes, like The Little Gym,” Hundorfean said.

What inspires Hundorfean is the research going into studying more about heart conditions, including at MUSC, which is a research hospital. MUSC has invested heavily in expanding its heart and vascular division inside the Ashley River Tower downtown.

“Our hospital is heavily involved in research. I’m grateful to be part of the organization because of that,” Hundorfean said. “We have also always been supportive of clinical trials studying Ricky’s case—especially if it can help provide awareness of these innovative opportunities for others in our situation. These advances in medicine have truly changed our son’s life.”

He is happy to help raise funds for the mission of the American Heart Association for life-saving research and support for patients.

“Research is a big component of The American Heart Association's mission," he said. “As someone who has experienced the resources and programs that were available to families suffering from congenital heart defects, I can say the support was amazing.”

In addition to individual walkers and teams of walkers, the Lowcountry Heart Walk will honor heart attack and stroke survivors, as well as caregivers. The Heart Walk is a community event and includes music, sponsor activities and a kids area.

“Heart disease and stroke are the leading killers in South Carolina and throughout the country. We want to change that. We want more people living longer, healthier lives,” Hundorfean said. “The surprising piece about heart health is that you don't realize how many people this touches until it has also touched you.” ϒ

To learn more about or sign up for the American Heart Association’s 2025 Heart Walk on February 22 that starts and ends at the Joseph P Riley RiverDog Stadium, visit lowcountryscheartwalk.org.