Sun Health CEO retires

At his “Keys to the Future” event Wednesday, retiring Sun Health Services CEO Lee Peterson handed over a unique set of keys to the community: a Steinway piano.

The piano – to take residence in the main lobby at Banner Del E. Webb Medical Center – follows Peterson’s donation last year of a Yamaha organ to Banner Boswell Medical Center.

“As we serve our patients, families and visitors, meeting medical, physical and spiritual needs, music can play an important role,” Peterson, 62, said in explanation of the gift. “There is a song in the balance of life cycles of those we serve. The piano helps us hear and honor that song. The gift of the piano for the Banner Del E. Webb lobby is to celebrate and sustain our tradition of community coming together in support of superior healthcare.”

The Glendale resident’s Sun Health career spanned 38 years, beginning with a job as a hospital administrative assistant at the Boswell campus in 1972. Peterson moved upward, becoming an assistant administrator, then executive vice president and chief operating officer of Del E. Webb and Boswell hospitals, then senior vice president. In January 1990, he assumed the position of president and CEO.

Much growth has occurred in West Valley health care during Peterson’s leadership. Hospital discharges have more than tripled, with emergency-room visits increasing more than four-fold.

In league with the population expansion and the need for patient care, Peterson also witnessed a 240-percent increase in staff from 1989 to 2007.

As an executive responsible for overseeing health care in a rapidly growing area, Peterson assumed an active voice in the health-care community via the Arizona Hospital & Healthcare Association. He is past chairman of the American Hospital Association’s Section for Aging and Long-Term Care and Rehabilitation Services; the Arizona Hospital Association; and the Arizona Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center.

He also is past chairman of the Western Maricopa Coalition, past president of the Health Administrators Forum of Arizona and a past member of the Johnson & Johnson University of Pennsylvania Wharton School of Business Healthcare Advisory Board.

Peterson is a member of Rotary International, a fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives, and has been voted one of the “Top 10 Most Influential People in Northwest Maricopa County.” He also received the Salsbury Award, the highest service-honor award given by AzHHA, and Midwestern University’s “Shooting Star” award, both in 2007. Most recently, he was a recipient of WESTMARC’s Chairman’s Award in 2008.

“Lee’s 20-year tenure as CEO of a very complex health-care organization speaks to his talent and ability,” said Richard Livengood, chairman of the Sun Health Services board. “With the challenges these hospitals have faced in regard to Medicare and Medicaid reimbursement, he has been very resourceful not only in finding other means to keep them operational but also well steeped in technology.

“One of the things I’ll remember about his leadership is his sensitivity to the community, and the way he balanced community needs with the wants and needs of healthcare providers to bring the finest care to the West Valley. That is so important.”