PrimeHealth Tabs Topeka Hospital CEO for Leadership at St. Joseph, St. Mary’s

With Prime Healthcare Service’s acquisition of St. Joseph and St. Mary’s medical centers taking effect over the weekend, the California hospital group has announced that Robert Erickson will succeed Michael Dorsey as the chief executive officer at St. Joseph Medical Center effective immediately.

Erickson most recently had been with St. Francis Health Center in Topeka, serving as president and CEO since 2010. In a release announcing the move, Prime cited Erickson’s history of more than 20 years in creating a culture of providing safe, high-quality care. He holds a bachelor’s degree in speech pathology and audiology from Marquette University, and a master’s speech and hearing science from Arizona State University. He also completed  coursework for a doctorate from Arizona State University before moving into business administration.

Prime also announced that Debra Cartwright, the CFO at St. Francis, would join Erickson at St. Joseph in that same role, and that Deb Ohnoutka would remain as chief nursing officer for both St. Joseph and St. Mary’s.

Completion of the deal to acquire the two Missouri hospitals gives Prime Healthcare four medical centers in the region. In 2013, it acquired Providence Medical Center in Kansas City, Kan., and Saint John Hospital in Leavenworth from the Sisters of Charity of Leavenworth.

The company said it would announce the new CEO of St. Mary’s at a later date.