Today, Maggie Hudson announced that she will be stepping away from Santiam this fall after 33 years with the organization, including the past six years as CEO. Her final day will be November 1.
Maggie has made a lasting impact on Santiam and the communities it serves. During her career, Santiam grew from a small rural hospital into a regional health system with more than 750 employees and an increasingly broad range of specialty services.
She also helped lead the organization through some extraordinarily difficult moments, including the COVID-19 pandemic, the Santiam Canyon wildfires, significant organizational growth and the implementation of Epic. I am grateful for Maggie’s decades of service, her commitment to patients and employees, and the important role she has played in strengthening healthcare in this region.
Leadership transitions naturally raise questions, particularly during a period of significant organizational change. Our priority is to support Santiam’s patients, employees, physicians and community while maintaining stability and continuity throughout the transition.
Santiam’s mission and its day-to-day commitment to providing excellent local care remain unchanged. Patients should continue to expect care from the physicians, nurses and staff they know and trust.
Our affiliation with Santiam is intended to strengthen that work over the long term. Rural and community healthcare organizations face significant financial and operational pressures, and Salem Health is committed to investing in local access to high-quality care and supporting Santiam for the future.
Maggie has expressed strong support for the affiliation and her belief in the path ahead. We share that confidence. Santiam’s strength has always come from the many employees, clinicians, volunteers and community partners who have built and sustained the organization over decades, and that work will continue.
We will share more about the leadership transition and next steps as plans are finalized.