On Nov. 30, Scott Bosch took over as CEO at Harrison Hospital, succeeding Dave Gitch, who held the post for 13 years and retired November 15. Bosch, who has 25 years of healthcare administration experience under his belt, can’t wait to get started.

“I know I’ve been saying this to everyone, but I’m very excited about coming to Harrison,” said Bosch. “I really, truly mean that.”

For Bosch, who earned his undergraduate degree at the University of Michigan and his Masters in healthcare administration at Trinity University in San Antonio, Texas, the path to healthcare administration was a natural one.

“I had a healthcare family,” he said. This family included relatives who were doctors and nurses, as well as his mother, who was a nursing home administrator.

Bosch’s early focus was on pre-med, but his strong liking for organic chemistry led him to believe that clinical medicine was not right for him.

Still, “I was kind of comfortable in hospitals,” he said, noting he worked a number of jobs in hospitals and labs. Then he learned about the profession of healthcare administration. Researching the field, he decided it would be a stable profession to enter, as well as a perfect fit for his affinity for hospitals, his strong business sense, and his desire to work with people.

After earning his Master’s degree, Bosch returned to Michigan to work for the non-profit Munson Healthcare System. During Bosch’s 13-year tenure there, Munson grew from a community hospital to a regional healthcare center, establishing the region’s first air-medical EMS transport service, a mobile cardiac cath lab, and a drug and alcohol treatment center, among other accomplishments.

His move to Colorado was prompted when he was recruited by Lutheran Health Systems, headquartered in Fargo, North Dakota, to oversee four of the hospitals in its network. In 1999, Lutheran merged with another company to form Banner Health, now headquartered in Phoenix. As president of Banner’s Colorado region, Bosch was in charge of 9 out of Banner’s 20 hospitals.

“Most were fairly small and rural,” said Bosch. “The facility in Greeley was large; it had 325 beds, which is just a bit bigger than Harrison. But the smallest, in central Colorado, only had 18 beds.”

After a number of years running a network of hospitals, Bosch found himself wanting to return to a single hospital environment. He was growing tired of the travel required for the job and missed working with the hospital board of directors and staff.

“In a hospital system, I oversee other executives,” said Bosch. “With a one-hospital environment I’m able to interact with the board and staff directly.”

The connection to Harrison Hospital was made through Witt/Kieffer, the executive search firm engaged by Harrison to find a new CEO after Dave Gitch announced his plans to retire. Bosch had also been in contact with the firm regarding possible career opportunities.

Harrison, Bosch said, had all of the criteria he was looking for: a good-sized facility with a large, sophisticated medical staff; direct interaction with the board; and a desirable location.

“I was what the board and staff was looking for, Harrison was what I was looking for,” he said, “when that happens good things happen.”

Bosch’s initial goal at Harrison will be to look at three major components of the hospital, clinical care quality, customer service, and competitive value, evaluating both what is working well and where things can be improved in each area.

“I think things at Harrison are good, but like anything else there are areas that could use improvement,” said Bosch.

Aside from wanting to provide the best healthcare experience to patients, Bosch is also looking at the encroaching competition. Harrison Hospital has always faced competition from Seattle and Tacoma hospitals – particularly for highly sophisticated treatments, such as open-heart surgery. And now, with construction beginning on the new Franciscan System hospital facility in Gig Harbor, St. Anthony’s, the competition is edging closer, literally. For Bosch, though, the new Gig Harbor hospital isn’t necessarily a negative.

“Competition forces you to look at yourself and improve,” he said.

Of course, improving means changing and Bosch acknowledges that there are changes in Harrison’s future. But he was quick to counter that change has always been a part of Harrison, and that he entertains no plans to rush in and turn Harrison on its head.

“Harrison is different today than it was a year ago, than it was five years ago,” he said. “Harrison would continue to change with or without me. I don’t think change is revolutionary, I think it’s evolutionary; there is an appropriate pace for it. You don’t want to destroy the good things. You need to celebrate those and hardwire those into the process. Then you have to continue to find ways to be better.”

On a more personal note, Bosch is excited about being a part of a new community and can’t wait to get involved.

“I’ve had a long history of enjoying and being involved in the community where I live and work,” he said “I think it’s important to give back and I think it’s part of my job to represent the hospital in the community.”

With relative bachelorhood awaiting him for the next several months, he should have the time to get a good head start on community involvement. Bosch’s family will stay behind in Colorado until his oldest son graduates from high school in May. Bosch plans to return to Colorado once a month or so and anticipates buying a house in the Bremerton area in the spring or summer when his family is ready to move.

“It’s a beautiful part of the country,” said Bosch of this area. “I think my family will love it here.”.