By COLE REIF
Great Bend Post
Growing up in Lawrence, Jay Tusten naturally attended the University of Kansas where he earned a Masters of Audiology, which was his beginning into the medical field.
Tusten would eventually work his way into healthcare administration with a couple of stops out of Kansas, but most recently spent more than a decade in Johnson and Ulysses, Kansas as a hospital CEO. Looking to get closer to family, Tusten found out about the open CEO position at Clara Barton Medical Center in Hoisington.
"I had been looking for a good opportunity to get closer to family in Denver or family in Lawrence," said Tusten. "I have some older family in Lawrence, so maybe a little more need to be closer there. When the opportunity came up, Clara Barton was close to the Interstate I-70 corridor. It's great. Great place."
One of Tusten’s four daughters had a procedure at Clara Barton while his family was living in Pratt, so he’s been aware of the hospital for a while but a lot of changes have taken place since.
"I was really impressed when I first toured Clara Barton," said Tusten. "I knew that's where I wanted to be. Everybody was fantastic to talk to. I could tell the culture was good. The growth the place has experienced has been fantastic. That just doesn't happen by accident. I knew that's what I wanted to be a part of."
Tusten replaces Jim Blackwell as CEO after Blackwell resigned this past May to accept a consulting position with Great Plains Health Alliance.