Poplar Bluff Regional Medical Center CEO Bryan Bateman has been on the job a little over a month and already has several goals in place for the next couple years.
His immediate goal Bateman is to get to know the entire hospital staff.
"I know there are 1,400 people here, but it's important to me," he said.
Describing himself as a believer in servant leadership and not an "ivory tower person," Bateman said he wants to know what he can do for the employees to make them a better person at work.
"I want people to be as excited to come to work on Monday as Friday," he said. "I want the employees to be engaged and enjoy what they do."
As CEO, Bateman said the passion for work is already in place at PBRMC, but he wants to strengthen it.
"A lot of people are doing 12 hour shifts and spend as much time here as they do at home. I do too," he said. "My goal is to be one big family and work as one big team."
Bateman comes to PBRMC from CHRISTUS Lake Area Hospital in Louisiana where he served as CEO. He has more than three decades of experience in health care, business and communications.
Last July, Bateman said Lake Area Medical Center sold from the parent company, Community Health Systems, but he stayed on with the new owners for five months to help with the transition.
Not exactly sure what was in store next, Bateman said while packing on his final day, his previous boss from CHS, who also oversees PBRMC, called him with an opportunity.
Previous PBRMC CEO Larry Rodgers announced his resignation in November to take a job as CEO at Southwestern Medical Center in Lawton, Okla., beginning Dec. 11.
Since Bateman has been with CHS for 15 years, minus the five months he stayed on with the new owners, he said he already knew the policies of the organization, so the transition would be a fairly smooth one.
In November, Bateman interviewed with CHS, then traveled to Poplar Bluff to meet with Rodgers and others. He then participated in peer interviews and group interviews with administration teams.
"It was a good experience and I was happy to leave saying these people are really engaged," Bateman said. "There are a lot of prideful people at Poplar Bluff Regional Medical Center. I fell in love with it here."
He was officially named CEO Dec. 18.
"I'm thrilled to come back to CHS," he said.
One idea Bateman would like to implement at PBRMC is a Healthy Women program, which would focus on women ages 25 to 40.
"We have to find that niche and make sure they are well informed so they can make better decisions," Bateman said. "I think it's our job to make sure they are better informed."
To kick off the program, a Healthy Women advisory board would be created, along with monthly meetings and specialist luncheons featuring physicians providing health care information.
Bateman also envisions an annual banquet to celebrate women who are trying to help promote mind, body and spirit with good health.
"I think Poplar Bluff is perfect for this and I'm excited to get it off the ground," he said.
Bateman added another goal is to see patients stay in Poplar Bluff for care and not need to travel to Cape Girardeau, St. Louis or elsewhere.
"This facility was built to serve Poplar Bluff and surrounding communities," he said. "If we have the clinical tools, my goal is to try to keep (patients) here. I don't care if we are the biggest, but I want us to be the preferred place to go."
To achieve this, Bateman aims to recruit primary care physicians for the area, especially on campus over the next two to three years.
To enhance this vision, Bateman would like to see another medical office staff building constructed on campus to attract primary care and specialists to serve the community.
Also looking ahead, Bateman envisions moving inpatient rehab from the Westwood campus to the seventh floor of the hospital.
This move would create more room, more beds and a better satisfied outpatient population, Bateman said.
He then would like to see an increase of behavioral health beds on campus to better serve the community, especially the elderly and adolescent population.
"I just want to get better at what we do daily," he said.
Bateman is a native of Texas. He received his bachelor's degree from the University of Texas and his master's in health care administration from Ohio University. He and his wife, Lisa, have two sons.
"Poplar Bluff Regional Medical Center has a well-known legacy of excellence in care delivery and a reputation for strong community partnerships," Bateman said. "The opportunity to join such an outstanding organization with a clear commitment to people - to employees, patients and the community as a whole - is an exciting one and I look forward to becoming part of such a great team."