Then & Now Scripps Health: 50 Years of Leadership

Ames, prior to coming here in 1976, you were CEO at Mercy Hospital in Miami. What attracted you to the role at Scripps? 

I sensed potential and saw the board’s commitment to grow in an economical way as stewards of the community’s dollars. I was also interested in their plan for a separate fundraising corporation that would be aligned with the hospital. I had a good feeling about Scripps and it was a highly sought after opportunity. 

What did you tackle first? What were your priorities? 

I needed to join the organization where it was. Nobody knows the hospital better than the people operating it, so I concentrated on getting to know the place, the people and the mood. It was upbeat and filled with competent people who were there to do the right thing for patients. And I needed to make sure the organization was helpful to them.

What made up the La Jolla campus at that time? 

The campus had 42 acres with only the two Scripps towers and two medical office buildings. Looking to the far south, there were nearly no buildings — it was still jackrabbit territory. 

That’s hard to imagine. How did the campus change in the next few years? 

Well, we first added the Poole medical office building, and that was followed by additional operating rooms, an ICU, some ancillary support, the Whittier Diabetes building and our underground parking. 

Scripps itself also began to expand. Were the next two decades of growth a long-term strategy? 

We realized we were in a growing community and that the La Jolla hospital also served other parts of San Diego. So, yes, we were cognizant of that, and that health care was changing. So, it was a growth situation; and the board was committed to it. And as it turns out, there were interesting opportunities. 

Can I assume running a hospital system was quite different than a single hospital? 

Very different. Some say hospitals are the most complex and difficult organizations to manage, and I agree with that. Now bring a group of hospitals together to make success of those as a network. It was challenging, of course, but we had to scale up our size to address the many changes happening in health care at that time — payment-related and otherwise.

If you roll back your personal movie of Scripps memories, what stands out? 

I had the great fortune of working with and interacting with many excellent and knowledgeable people who helped us to improve care and move things forward. It has always been the Scripps people who have defined Scripps. That was true then, and now. 

Chris, you started at Scripps in 1999 as chief operations officer. Before that, you were CEO of Long Beach Memorial, which had just merged with Anaheim Memorial. What was it about Scripps that brought you south to San Diego? 

Well, it wasn’t just one thing. But I did like that Scripps had steadily grown from one hospital into a multi-hospital system, and that it was still very focused on community care. I could see myself being part of that mission. 

Not even a year later you were selected as CEO. There was a lot going on at that time. What were your top priorities? 

Scripps was not in the best place when I started, so I focused on the fundamentals. That meant building trust and new relationships with our physicians and managers, stabilizing our finances and addressing our overall culture. It was a challenging time where we all needed to come together, and we did. 

Why was the culture piece so important? 

When a company grows the way Scripps did, people can feel more a part of their individual facility than they do the organization. But we had reached a point where we had to stop competing and start working together. 

How did you start to create trust? 

I was open and honest with our physician leaders, our managers and our staff. I let them see that I wasn’t hiding anything, that the decisions we had to make were sometimes difficult. And I asked for their help because they may have had a different perspective. 

You’re talking about things we find commonplace now here: Physician Leadership Cabinet, Leadership Academy, Employee 100, Front-Line Leader, etc. 

Absolutely. I also went to our sites and talked with people on the front lines, connected with them personally. That was important to me. 

Scripps has grown in many ways since your early days as CEO. What stands out? 

There are so many things — new buildings, programs, advancements. I’m proud of our physician relationships and our culture. We’re now an integrated health system where hospital care and ambulatory care go hand-in-hand. And we continue to provide exceptional community-based care that is as good or better than any system in the country. 

What do you see for the future? 

Health care is always changing. It’s becoming more complex and regulated and sometimes more difficult. But in many ways, it’s always been like that. Scripps is unique, from its founding and its mission to our patients and the thousands of people who make it all happen. Scripps is special. And it will still be special in another hundred years.