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Jason Wilson, the new Hospital Administrator and CEO at American Fork Hospital, second from left, meets members of the Emergency Room staff on Wilson's fourth day in the job, Thursday, Jan. 7, 2016, at American Fork Hospital. SPENSER HEAPS, Daily Herald

Spenser Heaps, Daily Herald

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Jason Wilson, the new Hospital Administrator and CEO at American Fork Hospital, poses for a photo on Thursday, Jan. 7, 2016 at the hospital in American Fork. SPENSER HEAPS, Daily Herald

Spenser Heaps, Daily Herald

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Jason Wilson, CEO and Hospital Administrator, right, chats with Dr. Chad LeBlanc in a trauma room on Wilson's fourth day working for the hospital, Thursday, Jan. 7, 2016, at American Fork Hospital. SPENSER HEAPS, Daily Herald

Spenser Heaps, Associated Press

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Jason Wilson said he has long dreamed of becoming the administrator at Intermountain American Fork Hospital.

Now, after years of waiting, Wilson finally has the job, and he’s here to stay. 

Wilson succeeds Mike Olson, who held the post for 11 years and left for a similar job at a hospital in Texas.

Wilson has been part of Intermountain Healthcare during that time. He joined Intermountain in 2002 to support operational improvements throughout the organization. A year later, he was chosen as assistant administrator of Intermountain’s Cedar City Hospital and later helped move the hospital to its present location. In 2007, he became that hospital’s administrator and CEO, where he served for eight years.

“Coming home to Utah Valley is really exciting,” Wilson said. “I never imagined I could be a hospital administrator in Utah County. I have worked for Intermountain roughly the last 14 years – the last 13 years at what is now called Cedar City Hospital, nine years as administrator.”

Wilson said he had specific reasons for getting into health care as a profession.

“The work at a hospital is a good and noble work — the opportunity to come to work every day and help people live the healthiest lives possible,” he said. “It is more of a calling than a job. It is who they are more than just what they do when they are on the clock. They are smart and talented. There is really no better hospital anywhere than American Fork Hospital.”

Wilson said a community hospital reflects the nature of the community.

“That is one reason this hospital is so wonderful,” he said. “These people care about this community and the care that is provided to their friends and family. They are personally invested.”

Wilson cited numerous awards American Fork Hospital has won, including being named to the top 100 hospitals in the nation.

But he said the hospital will not rest on its laurels under his watch.

“We are about to go through a big transformation with the information systems,” Wilson said. “It is about the collaborative way we work with the medical staff. The quality of care is unsurpassed.”

Wilson got the job offer over the phone one day as he was driving in Interstate 15.

“I pulled off the road and sat there about 10 minutes trying to digest that idea,” he said. “I called my wife. It was a pretty neat moment actually.”

Now that he is on site, Wilson has plans to continue to engage the community in the role of the hospital for the north county area.

“We want to make sure we are meeting their needs,” he said. “I want to take that forward as much as I can.”

Another goal is to strengthen the core services the hospital provides.

“We want to bolster it and provide the resources and opportunities for these departments to do the best they can,” Wilson said. “We want to provide a high quality patient experience that people feel good about and comfortable with.”

Hospital nurse administrator Terri Hunter said she was pleased to have Wilson on board. 

“He is going to be the most amazing partner in making American Fork Hospital the best hospital in the state,” she said. “These is what we are striving to do – bring the community together. He is smart and compassionate and will pull the team together to make our results and our patient opportunity the best.

The biggest thing for Wilson right now is spending time getting to know the hospital’s staff members and familiarizing himself with the programs and things already happening.

Wilson thinks one example of the hospital’s progressiveness is the use of technology to create teams for treatment, which reduces the final costs.

“We are a non-profit hospital organization,” he said. “Our mission is really to serve the health care needs of the community, not to make money, not to please our shareholders. I am excited for the future of American Fork Hospital. It is bright. We are going to do some great things here and take this hospital forward.”

Honors:

2012 Young Health Care Executive of the Year for the State of Utah

Chair of the Rural Hospital committee of the Utah Hospital Association

Chair of the Utah Summer Games

Board member of the Children’s Justice Center