The “Farm-to-Institution Models & Values-Based Procurement” panel explores the transformative power of farm-to-hospital models in reshaping the healthcare food system. Moderated by Nadine Clopton of Rodale Institute, this discussion brings together pioneers in food systems innovation, healthcare leadership, and integrative medicine to highlight how values-based procurement can drive positive change for patients, farmers, and communities alike. Tom McDougall of 4P Foods shares how food hubs create direct pathways from small farmers to hospitals, ensuring access to fresh, locally grown ingredients. Ed Nawrocki of St. Luke’s University Health Network discusses how hospitals can replicate the farm-to-hospital model at St. Luke's Anderson Hospital to enhance patient recovery, long-term health outcomes, and to provide unique employee benefits. Dr. Lori Walsh of Advocate Health Care brings a physician’s perspective, illustrating the clinical benefits of integrating organic, nutrient-dense foods into patient care and community wellness initiatives. Together, the panelists highlight the challenges and opportunities of embedding regenerative agriculture into institutional supply chains, showcasing models where hospitals and healthcare systems serve as catalysts for a more just, health-centered food system. Through collaboration and commitment, these leaders demonstrate how institutional procurement decisions can improve both human and planetary health, ensuring that nourishing food is truly part of medicine.

Tom McDougall, Founder & Chief Executive Officer, 4P Foods

Tom McDougall is the Founder and CEO of 4P Foods, a Public Benefit corporation launched in 2014 which operates a food hub network based in the Mid-Atlantic. 4P works with over 200 small farmers, ranchers, and food producers to aggregate, store, and distribute their food into multiple different channels including schools, hospitals, restaurants, and a network of Food-is-Medicine partnerships. As an advocate for equitable and regenerative food systems, Tom is a current Fellow with the Aspen Institute’s Food Leaders Fellowship Program. In 2019, he helped Co-Found the Eastern Food Hub Collaborative, a network of mission aligned food hubs up and down the Eastern Seaboard, for the sole purpose of regional collaboration and a more cohesive, decentralized food supply chain. Tom is an entrepreneur, an activist, and a big fan of food puns.

Ed Nawrocki, President, East Region & Anderson Campus, St. Luke’s University Health Network

Edward Nawrocki (Ed) is President, East Region and Anderson Campus for St. Luke’s University Health Network. As President of the East Region, he oversees St. Luke’s Monroe, St. Luke’s Easton, St. Luke’s Warren, and St. Luke’s Upper Bucks | Quakertown Campuses, in addition to day-to-day leadership of the Anderson Campus. Today, St. Luke’s University Health Network located in the Allentown, Bethlehem, and Easton region of Pennsylvania, is comprised of fifteen hospitals, 1,900+ physicians and providers, primary and specialist care sites. Prior to joining St. Luke’s, Mr. Nawrocki worked at the University of Wisconsin Hospital and Clinics, Sentara Health System in Virginia, and the University of Pennsylvania Health System. Ed currently serves as a member of the Moravian Hall Square Retirement Community Board, the University of Wisconsin-Industrial Engineering Advisory Board, and is a community volunteer for HealthSpark. He previously served as a member of the Hospital Association of Pennsylvania (HAP) Board, local United Way, and various Chamber of Commerce Boards. Ed earned a Bachelor of Science in Industrial Engineering from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and a Master of Science in Organizational Dynamics from the University of Pennsylvania.

Dr. Lori Walsh, MD, Medical Director, Center for Health & Integrative Medicine, Advocate Good Shepherd Hospital; Medical Director, Pediatric Integrative Medicine, Advocate Children’s Hospital

Dr. Walsh uses her clinical expertise in integrative medicine with a focus on nutrition and lifestyle teaching to prevent disease and promote health within the cultural and socioeconomic context of the patient. She is trained as a pediatrician and now bridges the children’s and adult side of Advocate Health Care in Illinois. Dr. Walsh sees infants through adults for integrative medicine consultations at the Center for Health and Integrative Medicine and oversees the clinical care provided by the integrative medicine team. Through her work at the Smart Farm, she supports regenerative agriculture, health equity and environmental sustainability. Dr. Walsh also works at the Healthy Active Living Clinic, a multidisciplinary clinic supporting children with elevated BMI through lifestyle and integrative strategies. Dr. Walsh earned her medical degree from Northwestern University and completed her fellowship in Integrative Medicine at the Andrew Weil Center for Integrative Medicine at the University of Arizona.

Nadine Clopton, Moderator, Regenerative Education Program Manager, Rodale Institute

Nadine Clopton is devoted to cultivating a world that places compassion, communities, & ecological wellness at the root of transformative change. In her role as Regenerative Education Program Manager at Rodale Institute, she works to bridge healthcare & regenerative organic agriculture. Combining her personal passions for holistic health, herbalism, & soil ecology, she supports Rodale Institute’s Consumer Education initiatives. Nadine is responsible for organizing Rodale Institute’s annual Regenerative Healthcare Conference– a unique, immersive educational program at the nexus of food as medicine, soil health, & sourcing. The program convenes doctors, nurses, health practitioners, hospital leadership, food systems innovators, & farmers looking to co-create a regenerative healthcare system. Previously, she has been engaged in global advocacy endeavors spanning public health and climate discourse. She is the first young person to have served as Director, Vice President, and then President of the Global NGO Executive Committee (GNEC), liaising with the United Nations to amplify the voices of civil society leaders. Nadine holds a Master’s in Environmental Policy Design from Lehigh University as well as undergraduate degrees in Political Science & Health, Medicine, & Society (Public Health). Outside of work, she finds joy in singing, writing, herbalism, & yoga.