The hospital’s operator, St. David’s HealthCare, announced Thursday that Tom Jackson, who has served as chief executive at Tomball Regional Medical Center in the Houston area since 2014, will take over the top leadership role March 27.
Previous executive Allen Harrison has accepted a position as CEO at San Antonio’s Methodist Hospital, according to St. David’s.
Tom Jackson[/caption]The 378-bed North Austin Medical Center is located at 12221 N. MoPac, Austin.
Jackson said one of his first priorities will be to establish relationships with doctors and staff.
“They have an accomplished vision and a very capable facility, so I think [my] first order of business is [to] develop relationships,” he said. “I’m looking forward to getting to know the team better and learning more about where the hospital’s developing and growing.”
Along with overseeing the North Austin Medical Center, Jackson will be responsible as CEO for several other facilities, including the St. David’s Women’s Center of Texas, the St. David’s Children’s Hospital, the Texas Institute for Robotic Surgery and the new St. David’s Surgical Hospital, which opened in October at 1201 W. Louis Henna Blvd., Round Rock.
“Tom is a seasoned healthcare executive known for his visionary leadership, quality results and exceptional relationships with medical staff and employees,” said David Huffstutler, president and CEO of St. David’s HealthCare, in a statement. “I’m confident in the contributions he will make at St. David’s North Austin Medical Center, one of our fastest-growing facilities.”
Jackson said he expects that growth to spur some of his main challenges as chief executive, which include handling increased competition in Austin’s health care industry while adapting to the needs of the North Austin Medical Center’s employees and patients.
“They are challenges in any busy market, and I’m sure they will be challenges here as well, but I look forward to addressing those and continuing to develop the facility as the market grows,” he said.
Jackson has more than three decades of health care experience, according to St. David’s.
In addition to his time in Tomball, he was previously CEO of College Station Medical Center and held other health care-related leadership positions in the Houston area.
Jackson said he has familiarity with Austin and the city’s health care market. He and his wife, Susan, met and married while living in Austin, he said.
Family life also played a role in his decision to take the job at St. David’s, he said.
The youngest of Jackson’s three daughters recently decided to attend at the McCombs School of Business at The University of Texas. His other two daughters attend Texas A&M University.
“We have an affection toward the city. We started our family here and family decisions have always been really important to me,” Jackson said.
St. David’s HealthCare is a joint venture between St. David’s Foundation, Georgetown Community Health Foundation and the Hospital Corporation of America.
The organization oversees more than 100 facilities in Central Texas and employs more than 9,000 people in the Austin area, according to St. David’s.
