Doctor’s Hospital in Augusta has tapped Joanna Conley as the CEO of the HCA-owned facility. Conley has served in healthcare and leadership roles with HCA in Nashville and Kissimmee, Fla., prior to assuming her role in Augusta.
She holds a B.S. Degree in Public Health, Health Policy and Administration from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and an MBA from Vanderbilt University Owen Graduate School of Management. Conley is also a fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives.
She assumes the role following the retirement of CEO, Doug Welch in May.
Meanwhile, Aiken Regional Medical Centers has announced the appointment of a familiar face as their new Chief Executive Officer. Matthew Merrifield returns after a two-year stint as COO at Summerlin Hospital Medical Center in Las Vegas. Prior to that, Merrifield was the COO at Aiken Regional for four years.
Merrifield succeeds Jim O’Loughlin who retired after 30 years of hospital leadership and more than three years with Aiken Regional.
As ABD previously reported, the Aiken facility, under the Universal Healthcare banner, has recently opened a freestanding Emergency Room at Sweetwater and a primary care facility in North Augusta.
Editor’s Note:
Mitzi Oxford is a veteran broadcaster and features writer who also worked at the same television station in Columbus, Georgia as Augusta’s Brad Means!
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