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SANTA BARBARA, CA—February 5, 2026 — Cottage Health is pleased to announce that Katy Bazylewicz, Chief Marketing Officer and Vice President of Population Health, has been selected as the 2026 Werft Fellow for Innovative Leadership. Bazylewicz is the inaugural recipient of the fellowship, which is part of the Werft Leadership Institute, established in 2025 to honor the legacy of Cottage Health President Emeritus Ron Werft.
As the 2026 fellow, Bazylewicz will explore how leading healthcare innovation hubs bring together hospitals, universities, startups, and investors to accelerate innovation and improve care. Her project will center on Hale House in London, a pioneering healthcare innovation hub located in the Harley Street Health District that connects startups with more than 2,500 healthcare professionals, advanced testing facilities, and industry leaders to support the development of new healthcare solutions.
“The Werft Fellowship is about giving our leaders the space to learn, explore, and bring back ideas that make a real difference,” said Scott Wester, President and CEO of Cottage Health. “We’re excited to see how Katy’s work will help strengthen care for our patients and our community.”
Her work will help inform strategies to strengthen Cottage Health and the Compton Center for Medical Excellence and Innovation.
The Werft Fellowship for Innovative Leadership supports focused, in-depth educational and professional development opportunities for senior leaders and emerging leaders across Cottage Health, offering recipients opportunity to study national and international innovative healthcare models, technologies and systems that advance patient care and community health.
The fellowship is made possible by the generous support of Ron and Mary Werft.
About Cottage Health | CottageHealth.org
Cottage Health is a not-for-profit health system providing advanced medical care on California’s Central Coast. In the past year, its hospitals in Goleta, Santa Barbara and Santa Ynez Valley cared for 20,833 inpatient admissions, 93,281 emergency department visits and 1,971 newborn deliveries. With more than 700 physicians, including specialists typically found only at university medical centers, Cottage offers expert, comprehensive care. As a teaching institution, it trains physicians through residency programs in medical, surgical, pediatric and radiology specialties. Cottage Health is home to the Central Coast’s only Level I adult and Level II pediatric trauma center and an advanced comprehensive strokecenter. Its specialty services include Cottage Children’s Medical Center, Cottage Rehabilitation Hospital, the Santa Barbara Neuroscience Institute, Cottage Heart & Vascular Center and Cottage Center for Orthopedics. Beyond its hospitals, Cottage expands care through primary and specialty clinics, urgent care centers and 24/7 provider access via Cottage Virtual Care.
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