Vice President and General Counsel

Robynn Van Patten brings more than 16 years of experience to her position as Vice President and General Counsel for the Daughters of Charity Health System.

Van Patten has significant health care experience, most recently serving as senior counsel for the business law group at Kaiser Permanente in Oakland. She advised on legal issues including regulatory and corporate compliance guidance and structuring, and assisted with dispute resolution efforts arising from payment, quality and contract relationship issues. As a supervising attorney, Van Patten implemented training programs related to quality initiatives and federal HIPAA requirements. She also worked with the corporate communications staff on press release and advertising review.

Prior to Kaiser, Van Patten worked for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, serving as general counsel to the 17 hospitals and clinics within the Indian Health Services, Phoenix area. She was responsible for all legal advice to the agency, including contract negotiations, consent issues, risk management and general hospital law. During her tenure, Van Patten drafted national policies regarding the release of confidential health care information under the Federal Privacy Act.

Prior to these notable roles, Robynn built a successful private practice back east, focusing primarily on hospitals and health systems. While at the firm Shanley & Fisher in New Jersey, Van Patten was the primary outside attorney providing counsel on behalf of her firm who served as General Counsel for Cathedral Health Care Systems, a Catholic health care system, and other hospital systems.  In this role, Van Patten advised hospital clients regarding issues related to hospital operations, including credentialing and quality committee issues, licensing and scope of practice, Medicare and Medicaid reimbursement advice, medical staff bylaws drafting and disputes, and provided counsel on ethical decision making and consent issues. In addition, she served as counsel to various health care practitioners on issues related to practice management, bioethics dissolution and dispute resolution.

Also during her career, Van Patten worked with the Clinton Administration as a primary researcher on the Health Care Reform Task Force where she was focused on mental health, public health and preventative health issues. Additionally, Van Patten taught business and health law classes at California State University, Hayward. Van Patten began her career as a Social Worker who developed and implemented a curriculum for child abuse prevention programs in Northern California.

In her role with DCHS, Van Patten will serve as a key member of the Leadership team, providing legal review and advice on contracts, government regulations, provider relationships, patient rights, risk management and more. She will monitor the work performed by outside counsel for quality, efficiency and performance. Additionally, Van Patten will develop standards for providing legal services to improve quality and reduce costs in our Local Health Ministries.

Van Patten received her undergraduate degree from Berkeley in English and Native American Studies and her law degree from the University of Michigan.