New HCA Florida West Marion Hospital CEO brings passion for quality health care in Ocala

HCA Florida West Marion Hospital announced last week the hiring of new CEO Peter Hemstead to replace Gabe Bullaro, who led the hospital for two years before leaving for HCA Florida West Hospital in Pensacola.

Hemstead plans to bring his passion for health care and leadership to maintain and improve the quality of care at HCA West Marion, one of Ocala’s three hospitals.

The new CEO introduced himself to hospital employees last Wednesday in a welcome celebration, where he told staff that the hospital has a reputation of exceptional care within HCA Healthcare, which spans 19 states and has over 450 care sites in Florida alone.

True dedication: At Ocala's Zone Health and Fitness, the athletes made Memorial Day count

Health center changes: CEO Jamie Ulmer with leave Heart of Florida after four years of bridging health care gaps

Water conservation program: OTOW, Stone Creek and Calesa Township residents will lower bills, water use

“I look forward to helping keep that consistency growing and keep that going in the future,” he said of the quality of care. “If you have any questions, please never hesitate to stop by. I am available. I have an open door policy. I want to know what’s going on, what I can do to help make things better here.”

HCA West Marion, a 186-bed hospital on State Road 200 just west of Interstate 75, provides cardiology, cancer care, emergency care, women’s care, orthopedic joint care and robot-assisted surgery, among other services.

Hemstead brings an extensive resume

Hemstead told the Star-Banner after the celebration that he would describe himself as a “servant leader,” saying there’s nothing he would ask for from his team that he wouldn’t do himself if qualified.

“My job is to remove obstacles,” he said. “I need to make sure that I provide the staff and the team with the resources they need.”

Having only been on the job a few days, Hemstead looks forward to proving himself to his team through actions, not just words.

“I can tell you about being passionate, but I have to back it up. I have to show you, and that's what I'll do,” he said. “I'm very passionate about making sure that we are the best in care.”

Hemstead’s most recent position was chief operating officer at Riverside Community Hospital, a 478-bed HCA Healthcare facility in California with an emergency room, Level 1 Trauma Center, Chest Pain Center, Comprehensive Stroke Center and other specialty programs.

He had previously served as COO of Doctors Hospital in Sarasota (now HCA Florida Sarasota Doctors Hospital), assistant administrator of Brandon Regional Hospital (now HCA Florida Brandon Hospital) near Tampa and director of the clinical excellence team at HCA Healthcare in Nashville, where HCA is headquartered.

“You can't make ‘one size fits all’ in health care,” he said of what he has discovered in his past positions. “I learned a lot of different things throughout the years, but I just look forward to being able to really focus on the quality here because that is something that this hospital and (HCA Florida Ocala Hospital) is known for.”

Both hospitals recently received A grades in the spring Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade ratings.

Making a positive impact on Marion County lives

Hemstead chose to come to HCA West Marion both to return to Florida and because of the talented physicians coming to the hospital. He also noted the beauty of Marion County, where his wife, two children and two dogs — a mastiff/great Dane and mastiff/boxer — are also moving.

With the growth in the area as well, he says the two HCA hospitals have been able to expand services so that people won’t have to drive to other cities.

“When I think about patient care, I think about my own loved ones,” he said. “Do I want my mom or do I want my siblings to have to travel 50, 100 miles to go get care? Absolutely not. They should have those services in their backyard, and that's something that we're working to provide and continue here.”

Hemstead, who is originally from upstate New York, comes from a military background, having performed search and rescue for the U.S. Coast Guard while stationed in Savannah, Georgia.

"You got to truly, positively impact someone's life," he said of his time in the military. “I loved the mission, and the mission is the same here. If we do our jobs well, if we as administration do our jobs well, then people have a better outcome.”

Hemstead says it’s a privilege to take care of people in their time of need and that in several years with HCA, he has seen the company fulfill needs in communities, as West Marion will do with a 36-bed inpatient rehab opening in the fall.

“As we expand access to healthcare in our community, Peter will be instrumental in spearheading that growth,” Chad Christianson, CEO of HCA Ocala, stated in a press release. “I have confidence his commitment to excellence will offer key operational oversight for our healthcare teams and patients.”

More from HCA Healthcare: Ocala firefighter was dispatched to an unresponsive woman. It was his mom having a stroke.

Meet Dr. Ang: Patients around the world seek out Ocala surgeon for procedure that treats rare disease

HCA West Marion also announces new chief nursing officer

HCA West Marion also announced on Monday that Suha “Sue” DeLeon has been appointed chief nursing officer (CNO), a role in which she will focus on patient safety, develop collaboration among department nursing teams and implement “evidence-based, innovative practices that further clinical operational excellence.”

DeLeon comes from 204-bed HCA Florida Citrus Hospital in Inverness, where she was CNO, and she was previously assistant CNO at HCA Florida Memorial Hospital in Jacksonville.

She had also formerly worked at HCA West Marion for 11 years when it was West Marion Community Hospital. She served in various roles as director of medical surgical, orthopedic and house supervision, as well as medical surgical/orthopedic clinical coordinator.

“I’m overjoyed to be coming home to Ocala and HCA Florida West Marion Hospital,” DeLeon stated in a press release. “The relationships I built here play a large part in who I am and how I lead nursing teams. I look forward to working alongside my friends and colleagues, expanding access to care for our neighbors.”

Christianson stated that they are excited to have DeLeon return to the HCA West Marion family.

“Sue’s proven commitment to people and nursing excellence is key to her success,” he said. “She understands the culture of care at West Marion and we are looking forward to the collaboration with our two hospitals and larger healthcare system.”

HCA West Marion, which opened in 2002, will be celebrating its 20th anniversary this September.

Contact reporter Danielle Johnson at djohnson@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Ocala Star-Banner: HCA Florida West Marion Hospital names new CEO Peter Hemstead