CHI Mercy Health Announces New CEO and President
August 7, 2023 (Roseburg, OR) – CommonSpirit Health’s Pacific Northwest Division President, Ketul J. Patel, announced today CHI Mercy Health in Roseburg, Oregon has new leadership. Russell J. Woolley has been selected as the new President and CEO after the retirement of Kelly Morgan in May of this year. Russ comes to Mercy from Virginia Mason Franciscan Health’s St. Francis Hospital in Federal Way, Washington, where he is currently vice president and chief operating officer. His start date will be October 2, 2023.
Russ joined VMFH in 2016, after serving as vice president of operations at University of Colorado Health in Fort Collins, Colo. Board-certified in healthcare management, Russ is a fellow in the American College of Healthcare Executives. He attended Brigham Young University and holds master’s degrees in health management & policy and in finance from the University of Michigan.
“We are excited to keep Russ in the CommonSpirit Health family and know he is the right person to lead Mercy as it expands to serve the growing community in Douglas County,” said Ketul J. Patel, President of PNW Division, CommonSpirit Health. “We would like to extend our sincere gratitude to Dr. Jason Gray who served as the interim President at Mercy after Kelly Morgan’s retirement in May. Dr. Gray was instrumental in preserving stability at Mercy during the search process; he will remain in the interim role until October, and will resume his duties as Mercy’s chief medical officer at that time. ”
Russ and his wife and four children are looking forward to being active members of our community and exploring Douglas County.
About Mercy Medical Center: CHI Mercy Health Mercy Medical Center was started with a $12,000 gift from the Roseburg community. That is the sum the Sisters of Mercy raised to construct Roseburg’s first hospital. The 25-bed Mercy Hospital was dedicated on Feb. 22, 1909, just four months after construction began. It was built on the banks of the South Umpqua River where the Douglas County Health Department currently stands.
CHI Mercy Health has grown into a sophisticated 174-bed medical center with advanced technology and a continuum of services to ensure Douglas County residents have access to state-of-the-art healthcare without having to leave town.
Today more than 1,000 talented and dedicated employees and 100 compassionate and giving volunteers work throughout CHI Mercy Health. It is their commitment that has helped Mercy become one of the country’s most highly rated hospitals for quality.