Wabash General Hospital CEO Jay Purvis informed WSJD News yesterday of his intentions to retire at the end of this year.
Mr. Purvis was a regional vice president with Alliant Management Service when he came to Wabash General in 2002. Not so coincidentally, 2002 was the last year the local hospital lost money. Since that time, WGH has seen unprecedented growth as a critical access hospital expanding their services to include a new orthopedic facility, oncology services, the return of pediatric services, along with several others.
In addition, under Mr. Purvis’s guidance, Wabash General has expanded its’ offerings into other communities such as Carmi, Fairfield, and Lawrenceville. Also during his tenure, the hospital became Wabash County’s largest employer with 375 employees currently.
In a statement, Mr. Purvis said, "It is with a heavy heart that I leave this position, but I have decided the time has come for me to start my retirement and spend more time with my family and to pursue personal interests. I have been affiliated with Wabash General Hospital for over 20 years, first as a regional administrator with Alliant Management and the last 16 years as President and CEO. I have been blessed to have been given the chance to provide leadership and direction for our hospital. For the services we offer, we are as good as or better than any other provider regardless of size. We have a superior hospital here in Mt. Carmel and good things really are happening everyday at Wabash General. I would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone involved in this journey for the help, support, and opportunity I have had throughout these past years. It has been a remarkable experience and I have enjoyed the time spent working in this community. The hospital is doing well and is positioned to explore our options from a stable high performance platform. I’m sure our ability to make a difference in our service area will continue.”
Mr. Purvis will turn 77 this summer and said the time is right to retire as the hospital just completed its’ best year ever financially. He and his wife Shari will move to North Carolina after his retirement to be close to their family.
Alliant Management has a process in place to find a successor.
