Officers
Michael Beal, President and CEO
Mike Beal, MBA, has over 30 years of post-acute healthcare experience. Mr. Beal began his healthcare career with Kindred Healthcare based in Louisville, KY. Over the span of three decades he earned his way through the ranks from nursing home administrator to President of Nursing Center Division, where he managed operations of Kindred’s billion-dollar multi-state portfolio of skilled nursing and assisted living locations. Prior to becoming Care Initiatives’ President & CEO, Mr. Beal was Chief Operating Officer at Senior Care Centers in Texas, overseeing a $1 billion healthcare company which provided skilled nursing care, assisted living, independent living, rehabilitation and hospice services. Mr. Beal earned his Bachelor of Science in electrical engineering and a Master of Business Administration from the University of Maine.
Dave Dixon, Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer
Dave Dixon, CPA, Chief Financial Officer, has over three decades of experience in accounting and finance, serving over 20 years with Care Initiatives as Director of Finance prior to his appointment in 2016 as CFO. Prior to joining Care Initiatives Mr. Dixon worked in public accounting in Des Moines. Mr. Dixon is currently the Chair of the Iowa Health Care Association (IHCA) Board of Directors, Chair of the IHCA Foundation Board, and serves on the board of Extended Care Services of Iowa, Inc. (ECSI) a group-purchasing subsidiary of IHCA. Mr. Dixon also sits on the American Health Care Association's Not for Profit Council, the Regional Multi-Facility Council, and the Business Management Committee. Mr. Dixon’s charitable works include 20 years on the board of the Des Moines Ronald McDonald House, serving as President and Treasurer and nine years on the board of Children and Family Urban Movement, serving as Treasurer.
Emily Drake, JD, Vice President and Chief Legal Officer
Emily Drake joined Care Initiatives as Vice President and Chief Legal Officer in January 2023. Prior to Care Initiatives, Emily was Vice President of Compliance, Counsel, and Corporate Secretary for a mid-sized insurance and financial services holding company. Emily is a graduate of The University of Iowa College of Law where she graduated with distinction. She is admitted to the Iowa bar and is a member of several professional associations. During her free time, Emily enjoys spending time with her husband, her two children, and their 5-pound Yorkshire terrier. She also currently serves on a non-profit board (Camp Fire Heart of Iowa).
Jeramy D. Kuhn, JD PT CHC CHPC, Vice President & Chief Compliance Officer/Privacy Officer
Jeramy Kuhn is an Iowa licensed attorney and physical therapist with over 30 years of experience as a health care clinician, manager, and executive. His practice experience includes outpatient, inpatient, long-term care, and home health throughout the Midwest. Jeramy has been with Care Initiatives since 2000 and, since 2005, has served as Care Initiatives’ Vice President - Chief Compliance Officer & Privacy Officer. He is a member of the American and Iowa Bar Associations as well as the American Health Care Association and American Health Lawyers Association. Jeramy maintains active membership in the American Physical Therapy Association where he has served as APTA Iowa Ethics Chair and is a current member of the Ethics Committee for the southwest district of APTA Iowa. He was a governor appointee to the Iowa Board of Physical and Occupational Therapy in 2016 and currently serves as its Chair. Jeramy holds the Certification in Health Care Compliance (“CHC”) & Certification in Health Care Privacy Compliance (“CHPC”) designations from the Health Care Compliance Association.
Joey Leonhardt, SHRM-SCP, Vice President of Human Resources
Joey joins Care Initiatives with over 25 years of success in human resources and over a decade in long term care and senior living. Most recently Joey served as the head of human resources for Lifespace Communities who owned and operated senior living communities and health centers across the United States. In her prior leadership roles, she served as a trusted advisor to the senior leadership teams and drove human resource operations in large multi-site organizations. Joey has a passion and focuses on enhancing the service culture and team member engagement with an emphasis on recognition and giving team members a voice. Joey fully believes that team member engagement is the key to success and most importantly - happy and satisfied residents. Joey, along with her husband Bill have two kids, Will and Zoe, and reside in Clive, Iowa. When she is not doing what she loves as the VP of human resources she loves to give back to her community by volunteering for several philanthropic events. She has served as a volunteer for the Alzheimer’s Association and the “Go Red for Women” annual fundraising event. Joey also enjoys time riding her bike in various events across Iowa and spending time with her family and golden retriever, Lulu.
Johanna Volm, RN, BSN, Vice President of Clinical Services
Johanna Volm has over 30 years of experience serving in long term care. Ms. Volm's dedication to long term care began when she worked as a certified nursing assistant for a skilled nursing facility while attending college. After completing her BSN, she worked as a State Surveyor for the Bureau of Quality Assurance in the State of Wisconsin for 13 years. Ms. Volm returned to patient care as a Regional Nurse Consultant for Extendicare. Ms. Volm's vast professional experience also includes roles in risk management, nurse consulting and director of clinical services for both skilled nursing and assisted living communities. In addition to her leadership role with Care Initiatives, she has been active on the frontline providing healthcare for residents and support for staff where needed.
Jessica McDyer, Vice President of Skilled Nursing Operations
Jessica McDyer’s career started over 20 years ago in environmental services and soon changed to serving residents as a certified nursing assistant, as she recognized her passion was to care for residents in the post-acute healthcare setting. She continued in long term care working as a certified nurse's aide while completing her bachelor's degree at The University of Iowa. Ms. McDyer graduated from the Tippie College of Business majoring in management with an emphasis in aging studies. She served as a Licensed Nursing Home Administrator for 13 years before transitioning to Regional Director of Operations. She currently serves on the Iowa Healthcare Association (IHCA) Board of Directors as the Multi-Facility Chair as well as the IHCA Foundation Board as the Director At Large. Jessica, along with her husband Dave, have two children, Lincoln and Addison. In her spare time, Jessica enjoys getting away at Lake Okoboji with family.