Let’s continue to take a closer look at the CEOs of our largest employers. Last week we heard from Ken Bateman, CEO of SoutheastHEALTH. Today, we hear from Maryann Reese, CEO of Saint Francis Healthcare System. She spoke, along with Bateman, at the Cape Chamber's First Friday Coffee on December 1, 2017.
“My father was a pediatrician in St. Louis and when I was a young girl, if I got on Saturdays if I got to the car before he left on Saturdays to make early rounds I got to go with him. When I was a little bit older I got to work in his office as a medical assistant basically. I roomed patients when was in high school. But I learned to do newborn assessments from him in his office, I learned to do blood pressures for patients and he definitely influenced my life. When I first became CEO I had a couple of nurses stop me in the hall and say 'Oh my gosh it's so wonderful that we have a women CEO and a nurse.' And I just kinda laughed and I said this hospital, this health system has been here for 142 years. It was founded by sisters, nuns. I'm not the first woman CEO. There was a stint of men and now we're back to a woman. So, that was that story."
Reese says there is much the two hospitals do together and more they could do in the future.
"I can tell you what does not keep me up at night. What does not keep me up at night is my competition… I think this hospital, this community is big enough for two hospitals. We're very lucky to have the quality of healthcare that we have in this community but the quality of the healthcare is second to none here.”
