Interview with Cottage Health’s New President/CEO Scott Wester

Scott Wester MHA is starting his new role as the President and CEO of Cottage Health on April 7. He was selected from a national search by Cottage Health’s executive search committee chaired by Steve Zola, prior Board Chair. Wester follows Ron Werft MHA, who recently retired as Cottage Health’s President and CEO having served for 25 years in that role, and who had a total of 38 years with the healthcare system. Speaking on behalf of his board, Cottage Health Board Chair Eric Seale stated in his press release, “We’re excited to work with Scott in the coming months and years and see him transform his vision into actions that improve health in our region.”

Wester comes to our community from his most recent position as President and CEO of Memorial Healthcare System South Florida, which is said to be one of the nation’s largest public healthcare systems, with six hospitals and over 16,000 employees. Prior to that role, he served 14 years as President and CEO of Our Lady of the Lake Regional Medical Center Baton Rouge, LA, and has a total of 30 years in health care systems. He holds an MHA from Xavier University Cincinnati, Ohio; and a B.S. Chemistry and B.A. Classical Humanities magnum cum laude from Saint Louis University Missouri. He is a native of Cincinnati, Ohio. Wester will live here with his wife Nicole. They have two daughters in college, one pursuing medicine and one pursuing veterinary medicine.

Due to his schedule and start date, we opted for an interview via email to dive into his strategic plans and pertinent data points as Cottage Health’s new President and CEO:

Q. What is your first priority in Q2 for Cottage Health?

A. I have a responsibility to quickly gain deep knowledge of Cottage Health and the community, so while I need to hit the ground running, I really want to get to know the people and establish good working relationships and partnerships. It’s important for me to be visible to employees and the community so I can understand firsthand the unique strengths and opportunities here, and together we can continue to build on the important work already happening to improve health in our communities.

I’ll be meeting employees throughout Cottage’s campuses, visiting patient care areas and talking to patients and families to learn their perspectives. And I’ll be engaging with medical staff, board, and physician leaders to learn what’s working well in each area, and where we can focus for improvements.

As I do patient safety rounding, I ask clinical teams for insight. I want to know what we can do better and what they need to make it happen. The teams providing care are the ones who know this best. Cottage Health has exceptionally strong systems already in place, with its shared governance, to bring employees’ voices and ideas forward from every area of the organization. It makes the hospitals and clinics safer places for care, for both patients and employees.

There will be a lot of knowledge transfer during my first weeks, to ensure a smooth leadership transition of this vital community resource. I want to keep the momentum on Cottage’s strategic priorities and implement the services and new initiatives teams have in progress. 

What are your first-year goals in taking on the position, what areas of Cottage Health’s services are you focusing on, and might there be new services offered by Cottage Health in any of its locations?

Cottage is in the middle of executing a three-year strategic plan, so there are goals and milestones we’ll need to meet to stay on track. Focus areas include patient safety and quality, expanding ambulatory care services and partnerships, and completing a collaborative community health needs assessment. We’ll be expanding services in the Santa Ynez Valley. We’ll also be evaluating a virtual nursing pilot program and opening a new medical office building for outpatient care on the Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital campus.

A specific area of interest for me is how we use new technologies and AI responsibly to improve health outcomes and workflow efficiencies. This year’s goals for our new Compton Center for Medical Excellence and Innovation include recruitment of the leadership team and selecting an innovation project, a venture fund, and a UCSB capstone project to invest in – so that will be exciting work.

Our Cottage Rehabilitation Hospital continues progress toward its move to the Goleta Valley Cottage campus, so we will be working to stay on schedule with that as well, starting with some of our outpatient therapy services later this year.

What is your defining reason for deciding to take the Cottage Health offer to be its CEO/President, and how long do you plan to hold that role? Your prior work shows a tenure of approximately three years for the majority of organizations you have led, with the exception of Memorial.

I’ve worked at two other health systems in the past 30+ years of my career in healthcare, building my knowledge and experience by serving in a variety of leadership roles. It was the people and the positive workplace culture that drew me to Cottage. This really is the opportunity of a lifetime. Locals may not realize how much your hometown healthcare provider – Cottage Health – is recognized as a national leader in healthcare. Other hospitals across the country see the programs Cottage develops and uses them as a model. This is a remarkable place, and I expect the time will fly as we dig in to our goals to make our organization even better for the community. To answer your question, I’m not thinking about an end. I can’t wait to begin. I’m excited for what Cottage and our community partners can achieve together.

As a top executive in health care for 35+ years, what do you do to unwind and stay healthy?

I enjoy time with my family. I like to be outdoors and enjoy running and golfing. My wife and I are looking forward to becoming part of the Santa Barbara community.

Additional talking points you would like to have mentioned in this keynote news feature?

I’ll just mention the people we’ve met in the community have given us such a warm welcome, and we’re grateful to be here. I’m already feeling connected to Cottage and will lead with care to protect this remarkable community asset. As you walk through any part of Cottage and meet with the people who work here, you hear common refrains that really tell the story of what makes this place special. One is Patients First. Patients are at the center of every decision, and the people at Cottage are laser-focused on doing what’s right for patients. The second is core values. Everywhere you go at Cottage, employees know and reflect these three words: excellence, integrity, compassion. Those core values are more than words, they are embodied in the work this team does every day to care for the community. Thank you for trusting us to do this work. It’s an honor to take on this role.

411: http://CottageHealth.org