Bay City Tribune

The Matagorda County Hospital District Board of Managers has hired Steven L. Smith as the new Chief Executive Officer.

Smith will take over his duties at Matagorda County Hospital District Nov. 3, 2008.

We are so pleased that QHR brought us such qualified candidates for the position of Administrator, said Betty Scurlock, Chairman of the Board.

In selecting Steve Smith we feel we have someone not only qualified, but with years of experience, great references and ties to our community. We know he will be a good fit for our district and we are expecting great days ahead.

Smith, or Steve as he prefers to be called, has over 25 years of healthcare management experience, including 18 years as CEO of hospitals.

His past experience includes: Administrator/CEO with the Louisiana Health Care Authority in Baton Rouge; President/CEO of Memorial Medical Center in Las Cruses, New Mexico; Hospital President and System Chief Operating Officer for Coffee Health Care Group in Florence, Ala.; President of Trusted Resources, LLC in Sugarland; and, most recently, Chief Executive Officer at Memorial Herman Specialty Hospital in Kingwood.

Kathy, Shane and I are excited about joining the Bay City community and the Matagorda General Hospital family, said Smith.

This is really a homecoming for Kathy (who uses our combined last names of Brueggen-Smith). She grew up in Matagorda and graduated from Bay City High School. She graduated from Texas A&M in 1974 and interned at The Bay City Daily Tribune and worked at the South Texas Project.

We have often talked about how wonderful it would be for our 8-year-old son Shane to be able to grow up where his mom has roots. We look forward to him enjoying the many fun local amenities: Matagorda Beach, water skiing, horse back riding and, most of all, getting to know kids who enjoy the activities of small-town living, Smith said.

I look forward to working with the dedicated professionals at the hospital and with the physicians in the community to continue to find ways to make local the best choice for healthcare, he said.

I also look forward to becoming involved, along with other business and community leaders, in the economic development plans for the area.

I really appreciate the boards confidence in giving me this opportunity, said Smith.

QHR, the hospitals management services provider, conducted a national search for a permanent CEO for Matagorda County Hospital District.

The hospital board and medical staff were closely involved in finding the best candidate for this hospital land community.

The staff of MCHD looks forward to Smiths arrival on Nov. 3.