Leadership

Russell Baxley joined Beaufort Memorial Hospital as President & Chief Executive Officer on September 12, 2016. Prior to that, he was CEO for Lancaster Regional Medical Center in Lancaster, Pa., a 213-bed hospital that includes an inpatient psychiatric hospital; cancer, heart and orthopedic programs; multiple surgical specialties; an employed physician group with more than 100 providers; and a telemedicine program, among other services.

Since Joining Beaufort Memorial, Mr. Baxley has led many initiatives to expand access to and improve the quality of care provided to the community. Under his leadership, Beaufort Memorial has constructed two state of the art cancer centers, a 70,000 square-foot medical office facility in Okatie, S. C., opened three urgent care clinics to serve Beaufort County, developed the BMH Care Anywhere telehealth app offering access to 24/7 video visits for urgent care, and reopened a beautifully renovated birthing center. Services have grown to include advanced orthopedics and spine care, robotic-assisted joint replacements, elective (non-emergent) percutaneous coronary interventions (PCIs), and enhanced mental health services with electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) and transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS). His collaborative community outreach has resulted in partnerships with Publix to include telehealth kiosks in four of their Beaufort County grocery stores, Amedisys Home Health to provide in-home care, and local educational institutions to develop and provide on-site clinical education and workforce development. Mr. Baxley has also helped to recruit more than 40 primary care and specialty physicians and advanced practice providers to the area.

A nod to efforts around quality care during his tenure, Beaufort Memorial has been recognized with the highest accreditation available from The Joint Commission for Hip and Knee Replacement, several “A” safety ratings from the Leapfrog Group as well as being named one of the top 30 general acute care hospitals in the nation for quality and patient safety.

A Johnsonville, S.C., native, Mr. Baxley received his Bachelor of Science degree in Microbiology from Clemson University and his Master of Healthcare Administration from the University of South Carolina. He has held roles as chief operating officer, assistant chief financial officer and director of development in small- and mid-size hospitals in both South Carolina and Texas, including Carolina Pines Regional Medical Center in Hartsville, S.C., and Paris Regional Medical Center in Paris, Texas. He has also served as director of operations and finance for a large family medicine practice and medical spa in Columbia, S.C.

Mr. Baxley is a member of the American College of Healthcare Executives and has been actively involved in community and professional organizations and activities throughout his career. He and his wife, Stephanie, live in Beaufort with their young son.  

Ken Miller joined Beaufort Memorial Hospital as senior vice president and chief financial officer in 2016, bringing to the 201-bed hospital with operating revenues of nearly $200 million more than 20 years’ experience in the field of health care. 

Mr. Miller came to BMH from CHI St. Luke’s Memorial, a four-facility network with 381 beds and net revenue of $188 million. There he significantly improved the facility’s cash position through effective goal-setting and action plans. 

Earlier, he was CFO for a division of RegionalCare Hospital consisting of facilities in Texas, Connecticut, Iowa, Pennsylvania and Ohio with combined net revenue of $400 million. 

From 2005 to 2011, Mr. Miller served as CFO of Paris Regional Medical Center in Texas, a 364-bed facility with net revenues of $125 million. He also served for three years as CFO of The Medical Center of Mesquite in Texas.

Mr. Miller began his career in health care as a radiologic technologist. He returned to school and graduated in 1990 with a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from the University of Texas at Tyler. In 1996, he completed his graduate studies in Health care, earning an MHA/MBA from the University of Houston. 

Karen Carroll is Vice President of Patient Care Services and Chief Nursing Officer. She has been employed at Beaufort Memorial for 36 years and is responsible for all inpatient nursing areas, surgical services, anesthesia services, emergency services, the Wound Care Center, the Keyserling Cancer Center and the department of education.

Mrs. Carroll received her bachelor’s and master’ degrees from the Medical University of South Carolina and her Doctorate of Nursing Practice from Sacred Heart University in Fairfield, Conn. She is an alumna certified Critical Care Nurse and actively certified as a Nurse Executive, Advanced, and a member of both The University of South Carolina – Beaufort Nursing Advisory Board and the South Carolina Workforce Advisory Committee.

Mrs. Carroll has fostered the development of several programs at Beaufort Memorial, including the Preceptor Program, the clinical ladder program, the centralized staffing program and participative management (Shared Governance). 

She has been responsible for the development of the Inpatient Rehab unit, the Wound Care Center and the Breast Health Center. She worked with nursing staff to make Beaufort Memorial the first Pathway to Excellence-designated hospital in South Carolina.

Kurt Gambla, D.O., became the hospital’s first vice president and chief medical officer in June 2014. An internist at Beaufort Memorial Primary Care for 24 years before assuming the CMO post, Dr. Gambla serves as intermediary between BMH medical staff and administration, advocating for high-quality, cost-effective patient care.

Besides collaborating with medical staff members to develop, implement and enhance clinical protocols and patient care services, he helps to recruit new physicians and plan for the strategic expansion and improvement of regional health care.

A graduate of the Chicago College of Osteopathic Medicine, Dr. Gambla spent two years at Beaufort-Jasper-Hampton Comprehensive Health Services and six years in private practice before joining Beaufort Memorial Primary Care in 1999. For 16 years he was also the hospice director for THA Healthcare.

A long-time participant in Beaufort Memorial governance, Dr. Gambla is uniquely qualified to be the voice of the medical staff. He has served on nearly a dozen hospital committees and was chief of staff from 2003 to 2005. As chairman of the Credentials Committee, he was responsible for reviewing and evaluating the qualifications of physicians applying for hospital privileges.

Dr. Gambla and his wife, AnneMarie, a case manager at BMH, have two daughters and two sons. In his leisure time he enjoys long-distance running.

Named Beaufort Memorial's vice president of quality services in 2017, Shawna Doran counts among her responsibilities the planning and leading of all quality, patient safety, risk, and patient experience initiatives.

For the last year Mrs. Doran has served as the hospital's corporate director of quality. Under her leadership BMH has received a number of national awards for quality and safety.

As quality coordinator of the Beaufort Memorial Surgical Services Department, she earlier played an integral role in the development of the hospital's percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) program, allowing it to perform emergency cardiac interventions on patients suffering potentially deadly heart attacks. In its first year, the program earned top honors for cardiac care from the American College of Cardiology and American Heart Association.

Mrs. Doran joined Beaufort Memorial in 2004 as a registered nurse in the Progressive Care Unit. Prior to becoming an R.N., she was for 15 years a paralegal specializing in hospital law, professional liability and compliance.

She holds an MSN from Walden University.

Brian Hoffman, a human resources professional with two decades of experience, is vice president of human resources at Beaufort Memorial Hospital. He manages all personnel matters for the hospital’s 1,800 employees, including developing plans to meet the growing employee population’s health care needs.

Before coming to Beaufort Memorial in 2016, Mr. Hoffman served for 11 years as human resources director for Lancaster Regional Medical Center and Heart of Lancaster Medical Center in Lancaster, Pa., a network of two acute care hospitals and multiple physician practices. Among his responsibilities were employee relations, compensation and wage analysis, recruitment, benefit administration, performance evaluations and payroll management for 1,300 employees.  

Early in his career, he served as a local director of human resources for HCR Manor Care, Inc., a long-term care and rehabilitation company, and as a human resource analyst for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.  

Mr. Hoffman holds a B.S. in Business Administration (Human Resources) from Shippensburg University and a Master of Business Administration (Management and Strategy) from Western Governors University.   

Chris Ketchie, a broadly experienced health care administrator, became Beaufort Memorial Hospital’s vice president of physician services in 2016.

As head of Beaufort Memorial Physician Partners, the largest multispecialty medical group in Beaufort and Jasper counties, Mr. Ketchie oversees 14 practices that together comprise 45 doctors and more than two dozen advanced practice providers. 

Prior to joining BMH, he held a similar position with Lancaster Medical Group/Community Health Systems, a 32-practice multispecialty medical group in South Central Pennsylvania. 

A native of North Carolina, Mr. Ketchie earned a bachelor’s degree in Health Promotions/Biology from Appalachian State University and a master’s in Healthcare Administration from the University of South Carolina. 

He began his career as a medical service corps officer in the U.S. Navy. Stationed at the Naval Health Clinic in Great Lakes, Ill., and later at Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune in North Carolina, he served in various posts, including as assistant director for administration for Naval Hospital Camp Lejeune and as commander/executive officer for the 2D Medical Battalion Charlie Surgical Company.

During his seven years of military service, he was deployed for 10 months to Afghanistan to help develop a medical clinic for detainees and another 11 months to the Mediterranean, North Africa and Middle East with the 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit.