Central Peninsula Hospital CEO Rick Davis is retiring this summer after almost 11 years at the hospital’s helm.
Replacing Davis is his right-hand man, current Chief Operating Officer Shaun Keef. Davis, who worked at hospitals in Anchorage before coming to CPH in 2011, says they’ll work together this year to ensure a smooth transition.
“I’m just about ready to turn 64. And when I first came down here, I had an agreement with the board that I’d stay eight years," Davis said. "And it’s coming up on 11 years now. Of course, I didn’t want to leave in the middle of the pandemic. That didn’t feel right.”
Now, he says, the timing does feel right. And he says he’s proud of the work he’s done with his team. Since 2011, CPH has added a myriad of service lines to its repertoire, like oncology and cardiology.
“Over the past decade, the team and I – the board, the admin team – have just been trying to work on bringing new services into the community that had been going to Anchorage or somewhere else to get services," Davis said.
Now, Davis is working on the development of a coordinated care program that will create a network of healthcare providers for people who receive care coverage under Medicaid. He says he’ll keep working on the development of that program going forward and he’ll stick with the hospital until it hires a new COO.
“I haven’t really put a goodbye date on my departure yet," Davis said. "I agreed to stick around for a year or so if I can be useful.”
Keef, the incoming CEO, has been in his current role at the hospital since 2019. He’s originally from Oklahoma and has degrees in business administration from Oklahoma State University.
Between 2012 and 2014, he was the hospital's chief financial officer.
“It’s going to be a good transition as we move forward, just because we have such a great relationship and work so close on projects together," Keef said.
Keef said he’s also proud of the hospital’s growth. He says he’d like to bolster some existing service lines – like the hospital’s catheterization lab and interventional pain management services.
"I think, more than anything, what I would like to see is us continue to be progressive and move in the direction that we have been in the last 11 years," Keef said.
Keef becomes the hospital’s new CEO July 1.
