Good Samaritan Regional Medical Center welcomes Timothy Eixenberger, DNP, MBA, to succeed Bill Howden as the hospital’s vice president of patient care services.
Eixenberger started in May.
Howden, RN, BSN, who has served in his position since 2014, will retire this week.
“I’m excited to be here because this hospital is well-known for high-quality patient care and teamwork among the staff,” Eixenberger said. “It’s also a great opportunity for me to return to the Pacific Northwest.”
Hospital Chief Executive Officer Becky Pape said Eixenberger was chosen following an extensive interview process with nursing managers and staff, physicians and executives.
“Tim brings a broad range of experience as well as his clinical and leadership skills,” Pape said. “We are pleased to welcome him to Samaritan.”
Eixenberger’s career has taken him across the nation, including executive positions in Texas, Florida and Washington state. He joins Good Samaritan Regional Medical Center from Massachusetts, where he served as chief nursing officer for the three-hospital Southcoast Hospitals Group in New Bedford since September 2015.
He started his health care career in 1977 as a respiratory therapist at Avera St. Luke’s Hospital in Aberdeen, South Dakota. He went on to lead the respiratory therapy team there, and in 1983 he joined Avera McKennan Hospital in Sioux Falls as director of the hospital’s cardiovascular services.
Eixenberger earned a bachelor’s degree in nursing in 1996 and took his first chief nursing officer position with Valley Baptist Medical Center in Harlingen, Texas. He would go on to serve in this same position at Bayfront Medical Center in St. Petersburg, Florida; St. Charles Medical Center in Bend; and Deaconess Hospital in Spokane, Washington prior to joining Southcoast Hospitals Group. Along the way, he earned a master’s degree in business administration and a doctorate in nursing practice.
Eixenberger’s career highlights include strong operational performances at his hospitals, strategic planning and implementation, recruitment and retention, service line development, quality improvement, consensus building, relationship-focused leadership and patient and clinician satisfaction.