Mary Ann Boccolini is the interim president and CEO of Samaritan, New Jersey’s leading community-based, not-for-profit healthcare provider serving South and Central Jersey from administrative offices in Mount Laurel. Founded in Moorestown in 1980 as one of the country’s first legacy hospices, Samaritan now provides hospice, palliative care, and an expanding range of life-enhancing services for more than 13,000 patients, and thousands more of their family members, across South Jersey.
Mary Ann first joined Samaritan as director of clinical operations in 1997 and later became president and CEO in 2001. Mary Ann recently returned to lead Samaritan after retiring in 2022. Through her servant leadership and remarkable career, Mary Ann established Samaritan as the state’s largest and leading provider of palliative medicine and end-of-life care. Mary Ann led the development of Samaritan’s comprehensive and growing family of life-enhancing services, integrating Samaritan into the fabric of the South Jersey community serving thousands of patients each year for decades. Beyond Samaritan’s core mission of Hospice Care, additional life-enhancing services include Palliative Medical Partners, Social Connections, Center for Grief Support, and the Boccolini Institute for Education, Research & Innovation, named in her honor to recognize the impact of her servant leadership at the local, state, and national levels.
Through Mary Ann’s leadership and advocacy, Samaritan’s award-winning services consistently exceed national quality benchmarks. Highlights of Samaritan’s achievements under Mary Ann’s leadership include Joint Commission Accreditation; development of The Samaritan Center, South Jersey’s only freestanding inpatient hospice and community education center; Samaritan’s Palliative Medical Partners medical practice and Expanded Access to Palliative Care Program to reach the community’s most vulnerable populations; Social Connections, providing volunteer services and convening community partners to address social isolation and loneliness among South Jersey’s most vulnerable populations; and Samaritan’s Boccolini Institute for Education, Research & Innovation, named in her honor, to advance the field of hospice and palliative care through Joint Accreditation, Learning Management System, Advanced Illness Management, academic partnerships, student learning experiences, and staff development.
Prior to joining Samaritan, Mary Ann was director of oncology services at Memorial Hospital of Burlington County. In previous positions, Mary Ann worked at the Philadelphia Veteran’s Hospital, Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, the National Institute of Health, and the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania. She received a bachelor’s degree from Boston University and a master’s degree in human services administration from Rider University.
Mary Ann has been recognized with numerous awards and accolades over her accomplished career. Honors include recognition by NJBIZ as one of its Best 50 Women in Business; South Jersey Biz as a Power 50 in the South Jersey Business World; and SJ Magazine’s Women in Healthcare of Influence & Impact.
Through all these remarkable milestones and achievements, including her service as Board Treasurer of the National Partnership for Healthcare and Hospice Innovation, and Board Member of the national Foundation for Social Connection, Mary Ann’s humble servant leadership inspires staff, volunteers, and colleagues. She considers it her honor and privilege to serve our community’s most vulnerable patients and imparts that philosophy to her staff colleagues as they fulfill Samaritan’s mission to provide extraordinary compassion and professional expertise to help patients, and those who care about them, live their best lives every day.
