SHELBYVILLE, IN - The Major Hospital Board of Directors announced today that Jack Horner has been appointed President and Chief Executive Officer of Major Hospital, effective immediately. “Jack has demonstrated innovative and insightful leadership for many years at Major Hospital in a number of executive positions, and the board saw solid performance during his tenure as interim CEO,” explained Gene Jones, President of the Board, in announcing the Board’s decision.

Horner, 51, a former vice president and Chief Information Officer for Major Hospital, was named interim CEO of the Hospital by the Board of Directors following the resignation of former chief executive Anthony Lennen in July 2008.

“Jack understands the complex challenges facing healthcare and has played an integral role in Major Hospital’s success in directly helping physicians and professional staff deliver quality personalized service, maintain high standards of patient safety and outcomes, and implement state-of-the-art technology,” the Board President continued.

“As the Board thoughtfully considered the future needs of the county and region, Jack gave us many reasons to be confident that he is the right person to lead Major Hospital and Major Health Partners. Under his leadership we have every reason to expect that the Hospital and its related organizations will continue to grow and provide outstanding healthcare services for the people of Shelby County and southeast Indiana.”

Jones noted that Horner played a key leadership role in Major Hospital being nationally ranked as one of the top hospitals for inpatient satisfaction by the independent Press Ganey healthcare ratings service. “Major Hospital is very fortunate to have on staff a high percentage of board-certified physicians, numerous outstanding nurses and professional personnel,” Jones said. “It takes a special person to organize and lead these talented medical professionals so they have the opportunity and environment to provide superb service, and Jack has amply demonstrated the capacity to achieve that,” Jones continued. “We invite our patients and families to ‘Experience the Major difference,’ which we define as high quality healthcare services delivered in a safe and uniquely personalized manner,” Horner said.

“I look forward to serving Major’s Board, our Physicians and our employees to provide quality healthcare for Shelby County and the region, ever focusing on continuous improvement and raising our service standards to the highest level possible,” he continued.

Horner, who began his healthcare career as a licensed pharmacist in the early 1980s, initiated and supervised a comprehensive implementation of state-of-the-art healthcare informatics for Major Hospital earlier this decade. The successful implementation earned the Shelby County healthcare facility the designation as one of America’s “top 100 wired hospitals.” Major Hospital was one of the first facilities in Indiana to incorporate telemedicine and fiber-based broadband connectivity between physician practices. Horner stated that the first priorities of the hospital will always center on “attracting and retaining outstanding healthcare providers, continuously working to improve patient safety and outcomes, and advancing our passion to invest in the most effective medical technologies and facilities for state-of-the-art service.” A native of Shelbyville, IN, Jack Horner is a 1981 graduate of the Purdue University School of Pharmacy. He began his employment at Major Hospital in 1985 and has held numerous managerial and executive positions. In addition to his many achievements at Major Hospital, Horner is active in numerous community activities.

About Major Hospital
Major Hospital is the primary healthcare provider for Shelby County (Indiana) and serves patients and families throughout southeast Indiana through the hospital and its vertical practice groups in Major Health Partners. Founded in 1924, Major Hospital has served as regional leader in successfully delivering a wide spectrum of healthcare services, including oncology and orthopaedics. As documented by the national independent Press Ganey ranking service, Major Hospital currently enjoys a top ranking for inpatient satisfaction in central Indiana. It has also secured a national reputation as one the nation’s leading hospitals in health informatics. For more information, please visit Major Hospital.