DALLAS—Eyecare Services Partners (ESP), a leader in integrated eyecare services, has announced the appointment of Dakon H. Montgomery as chief operating officer, effective Monday (Nov. 11). Montgomery comes to ESP with 12 years of leadership experience in outpatient health care services. Most recently he was a senior vice president in the ambulatory surgery division (ASC) of HCA Healthcare in Dallas, where he was responsible for four divisions encompassing seven markets and 37 ambulatory surgery centers, according to the announcement.

“Dakon is a proven operations leader with extensive experience in multi-specialty ambulatory surgery,” Daniel D. Crowley, executive chairman of ESP, said in the announcement. “He has a track record of working collaboratively with providers and maintaining a strong focus on communication, team development, systematic processes, and key performance indicators.”

Montgomery said he believes ESP is “an exciting company breaking new ground as an integrator and consolidator of eyecare services. He added, “It is an exciting time to be here, and I am delighted to be part of the team building this organization.”

Earlier in his career, Montgomery was vice president, corporate development – ambulatory surgery division for HCA responsible for ASC acquisitions and facility development in the western half of the United States. This followed four years as vice president of operations – Far West division for HCA.

Harvest Partners, a New York-based private equity firm, and Varsity Healthcare Partners announced in 2017 that they had completed a recapitalization of ESP, with Harvest acquiring Varsity’s majority ownership interest, as VMAIL reported. 

ESP is creating a leading integrated eyecare services company by consolidating market-leading ophthalmic and optometric practices and their affiliated ambulatory surgery centers. The firm oversees more than 200 providers and approximately 100 practice and surgery center locations in seven states and the District of Columbia, according to an announcement earlier this fall.