Butler Appointed Chief Executive of Hospital Group

Veteran hospital executive Richard E. Butler was promoted Monday to head United Western Medical Centers, a local hospital company recently acquired by a nationwide chain.

Nashville-based OrNda HealthCorp. said Monday that it named Butler chief executive of United Medical, which includes the 288-bed Western Medical Center-Santa Ana, a 193-bed sister hospital in Anaheim, a skilled nursing facility in Santa Ana, and Tustin Rehabilitation facility. OrNda acquired United Medical last month.

Butler, 52, will remain chief executive of the chain’s Fountain Valley Regional Hospital and Medical Center, which OrNda purchased two years ago.

The institution, which Butler has headed for nearly eight years, was the only Orange County hospital recently ranked as one of the nation’s top 100 hospitals for offering quality care at reasonable prices. The ratings were published in the highly regarded publication, Modern Healthcare.

In addition, Butler was recently selected out of a group of 50 OrNda hospital executives nationwide as the CEO of the year, said Butler’s boss, Kenneth Westbrook, a senior vice president in charge of OrNda’s California operations. Westbrook noted that Butler helped launch Cal-OPTIMA, the county’s experimental managed care program for the poor, and has turned the Fountain Valley hospital into Cal-OPTIMA’s largest provider.

Butler replaces Douglas L. Drumwright.

OrNda, the largest hospital operator in the county, owns 10 acute-care hospitals that are licensed for about 1,300 beds, Butler said. OrNda itself is expected to merge with Santa Monica-based Tenet Health Care Corp., the corporate hospital giant, by the end of this month.