Regional Dignity Health Senior VP of Operations Announces Retirement Plans

SAN BERNARDINO >> Steve Barron, Senior Vice President of Operations for Dignity Health’s Southern California Service Area, has announced his retirement after nearly 40 years in executive-level health care positions in Washington and California. While a search for Barron’s replacement has begun, he will remain in his current role and aid in the leadership transition through October 2016. Barron joined Dignity Health in 1999, at that time known as Catholic Healthcare West, serving as President of St. Bernardine Medical Center in San Bernardino, California, for 15 years. Throughout his tenure at Dignity Health, Barron held increasingly responsible positions in Southern California as a member of Dignity Health’s executive team. In late 2010, Barron took on a dual responsibility leading St. Bernardine and Community Hospital of San Bernardino. In 2012, Dignity Health’s Southern California hospitals were consolidated into service areas, and Barron assumed leadership of the company’s Southern California East region. Today, he guides the strategic direction of the six-hospital Dignity Health Southern California Service Area, which includes St. Bernardine and Community Hospital, as well as California Hospital Medical Center in downtown Los Angeles, Glendale Memorial Hospital, Northridge Hospital Medical Center and St. Mary Medical Center in Long Beach. “During his tenure at Dignity Health, Steve assembled management teams whose efforts and achievements in quality and operational performance have been widely recognized,” explains Marvin O’Quinn, Dignity Health Senior Executive Vice President & Chief Operations Officer. “Many of his original executives have gone on to become hospital presidents, regional and system executives, which is a testament to his ability to identify and cultivate exceptional talent.” One of Steve’s former executives, Jack Ivie, now the president of Dignity Health - Glendale Memorial Hospital, adds, “Steve’s passion for providing quality health care in working class neighborhoods and disenfranchised cities throughout Southern California is a powerful legacy and an admirable representation of Dignity Health’s mission.” Barron’s retirement will also be felt in the health care industry as he has maintained an active involvement in industry education, activities and organizations. He has served on the boards of several of those organizations in Southern California, including most recently as the chair-elect of the Hospital Association of Southern California’s Executive Committee, Inland Health Management Associates and Inland Action. Steve Barron is a resident of Lake Arrowhead, California.