CMC Retains Stephen Carlson as New President, CEO
Posted by Karen Sullivan on Wednesday March 14, 2007, 7:21 pm
In announcing Carlson’s appointment, Robert Phillips, chair of CMC’s board of directors, said Carlson was selected due to his two decades of experience in healthcare with proven performance in physician partnering, quality improvement, patient and employee satisfaction and program development.
“Steve’s competence is striking,” Phillips said. “His development of Flagstaff Medical Center into the primary regional referral center for Northern Arizona is just one indication of his abilities. Steve is proven and results-oriented.”
At Flagstaff Medical Center, Carlson was accountable for a $245 million operational budget, a $40 million capital budget, and 2,200 employees. During his time at FMC, Carlson developed and executed a $150 million master site plan, increasing the hospital’s capacity for acute care by 70 percent and doubling net patient revenues within the first six years of his tenure.
The 240-bed FMC provides a variety of services, including a Level II trauma center, inpatient and outpatient psychiatric services, inpatient and outpatient rehabilitative services, extensive endovascular services, an open-heart surgical program, a Level II Neonatal Intensive Care Unit and a ground-and-air ambulance company.
In Flagstaff, Carlson also served as a senior executive officer for FMC’s parent organization, Northern Arizona Healthcare. In this role, he also oversaw the management of Winslow Memorial Hospital, a 35-bed acute care facility.
Under Carlson’s leadership, FMC achieved top statewide rankings for quality of care performance, and FMC was rated one of Arizona’s top 10 hospitals by the state’s residents. In independent surveys, FMC employees rated the hospital among the top 25 percent nationally, in terms of employee satisfaction.
Carlson currently works as a business unit leader for W.L. Gore’s Medical Products Division in Flagstaff. His work at Gore centers on the development, sale and distribution of transcatheter-based products related to the field of endovascular medicine. Advances in endovascular medicine have and will continue to revolutionize the practice of interventional cardiology, interventional radiology, vascular surgery and cardiothoracic surgery.
Phillips said Carlson’s professional attributes in terms of formulating business and community partnerships were key in the decision by CMC’s board of directors to retain him.
“His provision of on-going support for a multitude of programs and initiatives has been admirable, and we look for Steve to continue that good work in Missoula,” Phillips said.
Under Carlson’s leadership, FMC provided support for a baccalaureate nursing program at Northern Arizona University and sponsored development of a two-year nursing program at Coconino Community College. Carlson also has been an active supporter of United Way and the YMCA.
In Flagstaff, Carlson has served on various advisory committees for Northern Arizona University and as a board member and past chair of the Flagstaff Chamber of Commerce. He has served on committees related to the Arizona Healthcare and Hospital Association and the American Hospital Association. Carlson is a member of the American College of Health Care Executives and in 1999 received ACHE’s Young Administrator of the Year award for the state of Arizona.
At CMC, Carlson will oversee an operational budget of $120 million and 1,250 employees. The 146-bed hospital features a Level III trauma center, an air transport program featuring Community CareFlight, the CARF-accredited Rehabilitation Institute of Montana, a Level III Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, the Montana Heart Institute, a primary and specialty physician network, the Montana Pain Institute, and Western Montana’s most extensive pediatric network.
“What attracted me to Community Medical Center were the unique provider and service opportunities that exist at CMC,” Carlson said. “I am excited about the opportunity CMC has to further the advancement of state-of-the-art medicine in a multitude of critical services. I very much look forward to building lasting relationships with the hospital’s medical staff, CMC employees and other local and regional providers.”
Carlson cited CMC’s recent affiliation with Children’s Hospital & Regional Medical Center in Seattle, a relationship that will enhance pediatric services in Western Montana, as an example of the type of associations CMC will be seeking.
“Partnerships such as the relationship with Seattle Children’s will play a critical role in CMC’s future,” Carlson said. “The next few years will be very exciting for the stakeholders of Community Medical Center.”
Phillips said Carlson’s demonstrated commitment to collaboration – with physicians and the communities in which he’s worked – also was a reason for his hiring, as CMC is currently in discussion with officials from St. Patrick Hospital and Health Sciences Center to investigate prospective areas of collaboration.
Carlson holds a master’s degree in hospital administration from the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis. He is married to Anne Carlson and they have two children, ages 16 and 13.
“Steve’s competence is striking,” Phillips said. “His development of Flagstaff Medical Center into the primary regional referral center for Northern Arizona is just one indication of his abilities. Steve is proven and results-oriented.”
At Flagstaff Medical Center, Carlson was accountable for a $245 million operational budget, a $40 million capital budget, and 2,200 employees. During his time at FMC, Carlson developed and executed a $150 million master site plan, increasing the hospital’s capacity for acute care by 70 percent and doubling net patient revenues within the first six years of his tenure.
The 240-bed FMC provides a variety of services, including a Level II trauma center, inpatient and outpatient psychiatric services, inpatient and outpatient rehabilitative services, extensive endovascular services, an open-heart surgical program, a Level II Neonatal Intensive Care Unit and a ground-and-air ambulance company.
In Flagstaff, Carlson also served as a senior executive officer for FMC’s parent organization, Northern Arizona Healthcare. In this role, he also oversaw the management of Winslow Memorial Hospital, a 35-bed acute care facility.
Under Carlson’s leadership, FMC achieved top statewide rankings for quality of care performance, and FMC was rated one of Arizona’s top 10 hospitals by the state’s residents. In independent surveys, FMC employees rated the hospital among the top 25 percent nationally, in terms of employee satisfaction.
Carlson currently works as a business unit leader for W.L. Gore’s Medical Products Division in Flagstaff. His work at Gore centers on the development, sale and distribution of transcatheter-based products related to the field of endovascular medicine. Advances in endovascular medicine have and will continue to revolutionize the practice of interventional cardiology, interventional radiology, vascular surgery and cardiothoracic surgery.
Phillips said Carlson’s professional attributes in terms of formulating business and community partnerships were key in the decision by CMC’s board of directors to retain him.
“His provision of on-going support for a multitude of programs and initiatives has been admirable, and we look for Steve to continue that good work in Missoula,” Phillips said.
Under Carlson’s leadership, FMC provided support for a baccalaureate nursing program at Northern Arizona University and sponsored development of a two-year nursing program at Coconino Community College. Carlson also has been an active supporter of United Way and the YMCA.
In Flagstaff, Carlson has served on various advisory committees for Northern Arizona University and as a board member and past chair of the Flagstaff Chamber of Commerce. He has served on committees related to the Arizona Healthcare and Hospital Association and the American Hospital Association. Carlson is a member of the American College of Health Care Executives and in 1999 received ACHE’s Young Administrator of the Year award for the state of Arizona.
At CMC, Carlson will oversee an operational budget of $120 million and 1,250 employees. The 146-bed hospital features a Level III trauma center, an air transport program featuring Community CareFlight, the CARF-accredited Rehabilitation Institute of Montana, a Level III Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, the Montana Heart Institute, a primary and specialty physician network, the Montana Pain Institute, and Western Montana’s most extensive pediatric network.
“What attracted me to Community Medical Center were the unique provider and service opportunities that exist at CMC,” Carlson said. “I am excited about the opportunity CMC has to further the advancement of state-of-the-art medicine in a multitude of critical services. I very much look forward to building lasting relationships with the hospital’s medical staff, CMC employees and other local and regional providers.”
Carlson cited CMC’s recent affiliation with Children’s Hospital & Regional Medical Center in Seattle, a relationship that will enhance pediatric services in Western Montana, as an example of the type of associations CMC will be seeking.
“Partnerships such as the relationship with Seattle Children’s will play a critical role in CMC’s future,” Carlson said. “The next few years will be very exciting for the stakeholders of Community Medical Center.”
Phillips said Carlson’s demonstrated commitment to collaboration – with physicians and the communities in which he’s worked – also was a reason for his hiring, as CMC is currently in discussion with officials from St. Patrick Hospital and Health Sciences Center to investigate prospective areas of collaboration.
Carlson holds a master’s degree in hospital administration from the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis. He is married to Anne Carlson and they have two children, ages 16 and 13.
