Seattle, Wash. — Providence Swedish, a leading health care provider in the Puget Sound region of Western Washington, announced that Dr. Guy Hudson will be stepping down from his role as chief executive of Providence’s North Division on April 1 and as president and CEO of Swedish Health Services on Sept. 30.
Dr. Hudson has served the organization for nearly 16 years, including the past six years as president and CEO of Swedish. Through several leadership roles over the years, he has played a crucial role in advancing health care across Western Washington, bringing a mission mindset and a steadfast commitment to excellence and compassion for patients, caregivers, medical staffs and communities.
Dr. Hudson was recruited to Swedish in 2007 to practice as a pediatric urologic surgeon and to help the organization expand access to pediatric specialty care in Western Washington. In 2017, he agreed to take on the role of president and CEO of Swedish Health Services to lead the organization through a time of transition.
“Dr. Hudson leaves a tremendous legacy of achievements during his tenure at Swedish, and I am deeply grateful for his leadership, dedication, and friendship over the last 16 years," said Rod Hochman, M.D., Providence president and CEO. “Having assembled an outstanding leadership team for our Puget Sound region and North Division, he leaves the organization in capable hands as he is being called to take his career in a new direction.”
Under Dr. Hudson’s leadership, the organization integrated patient care operations across the Puget Sound region, unified Providence and Swedish under a shared brand, and brought together Providence’s Puget Sound and Alaska operations into a new North Division. Quality scores have improved at all Swedish hospitals during his tenure and philanthropic support for Swedish has increased 125%, anchored by a historic gift of $20 million from Paul Allen to establish the Paul G. Allen Research Center at the Swedish Cancer Institute.
Dr. Hudson has advanced a major redevelopment project at Swedish’s flagship First Hill campus to transform the hospital to better serve the needs of patients and the community into the future. He has also led investments in technology, including telehealth and virtual health programs, and expansion of the primary care and ambulatory care network to deliver care that is more accessible and closer to home.
Dr. Hudson also led the organization's COVID-19 response in Western Washington, which included mobilizing one of the nation’s first mass vaccination sites and partnering with the City of Seattle to lead the largest civilian vaccination site in the country. As a champion of behavioral health and self-care, Dr. Hudson increased resources to support caregiver health during the pandemic, which continues today. Building on learnings from the COVID-19 response, Swedish created the Staffing, Transfer, and Operations Center, a groundbreaking application of GE Tiles technology to provide a real-time view of every patient across all 1,500 beds in Swedish hospitals.
Dr. Hudson oversaw several pioneering advancements in the areas of diversity, equity and inclusion. Under his leadership, Swedish stood up the Office of Health Equity, Diversity and Inclusion, which became a model for the entire Providence system and many other health care organizations. Swedish also launched a partnership with Meharry Medical College to train black physicians. Workforce diversity increased nearly 10 percent in the last five years of Dr. Hudson’s tenure as CEO.
Dr. Hudson also increased diversity among his executive leadership team and the Swedish Board of Trustees. Diversity within his leadership team increased 30 percent and diversity within the Board increased 20 percent – an achievement that has been commended by the American Hospital Association. Dr. Hudson has also been a visible and strong advocate at the local, state and national levels for the most vulnerable patient populations, and he chairs the Washington State Hospital Association’s board of directors.
Dr. Hudson will work closely with the Swedish Board of Trustees as it begins the process of selecting the next president and CEO of Swedish Health Services.
Elizabeth Wako, M.D., will continue to oversee Providence Swedish operations in King County as the chief executive for the Central Puget Sound service area, while Kristy Carrington will continue to serve as the chief executive for the North Puget Sound service area and maintain responsibility for Providence Swedish operations in Snohomish County and Providence Regional Medical Center Everett.
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