After 6 ½ years Randall Neely has served his last day as CEO of Simpson General Hospital.
Before becoming the administrator of SGH Neely’s background was in education. He served in this capacity for over 30 years and was once the principal of Mendenhall High School.
After retiring from education he ran for mayor of Mendenhall and won, serving in that office for six years before accepting his latest role as hospital administrator.
He said, “I was on the hospital board and our administrator resigned. I talked with some of the other board members and was offered the job and I accepted.” He was still serving as mayor of Mendenhall when he accepted the position. He laughed and said, “It was an interesting experience. I had the misguided notion that I could be part time mayor and do this at the same time. After six weeks I resigned as mayor.”
Simpson General Hospital played an important role in Neely’s life even before he became its administrator. He explained that he became a member of the hospital board because of his parents, who were both patients of the hospital during the twilight of their lives so he began spending more time there.
He said, “When my parents were here I learned to love and appreciate the care provided by the hospital.” Understanding the importance of the hospital is what drove him to take that next step from board member to administrator.
Before Neely accepted the job it was no secret that the hospital was facing financial difficulties. The situation had gotten to the point where the board was discussing selling or closing the doors for good. Neely said he decided to give the administrator position a chance and see if he could turn things around.
Neely and another former Mendenhall mayor, Al Gary, started working at SGH on the same day. The two would go on to work closely together and play a vital role in the current success of the hospital.
Turning things around was difficult but not impossible. Neely admitted that he had no idea how to run a hospital or deal with insurance companies, but he had over 30 years of administrative experience to draw from. He said these are extremely hard times for rural hospitals in the country.
He described one of the problems being the reluctance of insurance companies to reimburse hospitals, which make it hard for “small guys” to make ends meet.
Neely said, “We did a lot of work, we were blessed in a lot of ways, and never missed a pay roll.” He added, “We were behind on bills at times, but it was like that when we took over. Al and the people who work here always found a way to bring us back.”
Neely credits his success to the people who worked with him. “There are a lot of good people here,” he said. “If you depend on the people that work with you and their expertise, more often than not you’re going to be successful.” He said these outstanding individuals made his job easier.
Neely said, “I’ve worked with a lot of good people in my years in Simpson County and these are some of the best. These outstanding employees are a blessing to the community.”
David Welch has been named interim CEO at the hospital with Neely working as an advisor and consultant until October. He revealed that he will also be completing a few projects with the State Board of Health.
Neely laughed and said, “It’s not my last day, just my last day as the boss, but that doesn’t matter. I’m leaving it in very capable hands.”
