Gratitude, opportunities from a tough year
By Edward Pyun Jr., MD, Good Samaritan Hospital Chief of Staff
Well, it has been a challenging year with many changes, as well as many opportunities. First, many of us were sad to see our colleagues depart from Good Samaritan Hospital this past year. I know that many of you probably continue to maintain relationships as colleagues and friends in the community. At the end of the day, we are still neighbors and friends. Job changes do not change the fact that we are human and should be kind and supportive of one another.
I also want to thank all the medical staff for your hard work through all the events related to the merger this past year. I would like to thank Dr. John Bradley, Dr. Chloe Ingoldby, Dr. Leah Fuchs and Dr. Brian Nordstrom-Lane. With all the difficulties that we experienced, I was proud to see many of you throw in to help, support and fix the very things that were creating problems in the flow of patient care. Despite the extra work and burden it placed on all of you, I saw you work together, pursue issues and continue to stick with it to completion. Other groups in society would have run away or ignored problems such as these, but you all took up the challenge and did amazing things. I am so proud to know you all and call you physicians, colleagues and friends.
I have also grown up and learned a lot in this role this past year. You have all supported me, and I could not have gotten through this year without your support. I would like to thank Dr. Travis Guthrie, Dr. Adam Bulter, Dr. David Jackson and Dr. Liz Withers. I would also especially like to thank Georgeann Bell and Angel Archer in the Medical Staff Office. Your motivation to work on things or just giving some emotional support at times means much to me. Being a leader in trauma is one thing, but being the Chief of Staff carries the weight of so much more. This position may make you feel alone at times, but the key to success is continuously communicating with everyone and knowing that your team can help you shoulder the weight of the job and remind you that you are never truly alone. I know I have a great many wonderful people on the team whom I work with every day and can’t be thankful enough.
We have been fiscally conservative but always concerned about the hospital staff. The ice cream truck event that you supported was amazing this year and meant a lot to the staff. They embraced the feeling that we do care about them and understood the message that we cannot do healthcare without them. We plan to do this again in Summer 2026. We are also trying to plan a burrito event as well in the Spring. We are also working on creating an endowment fund to create a medical staff legacy, the first of its kind, to help support patients and their families as well as employees and their families in the years ahead.
As a personal request for 2026, I would like to invite you all to consider asking what it would look like to be a member of the Peer Review Committee or Credentials Committee. Or if you have an added interest, ask what is expected to be part of the Medical Executive Committee. We are really looking to fill some vice chair positions on the MEC in 2026. Of course, you need to be appointed to be on any of these committees, as we want balanced and objective-thinking people. We really need your support to rebuild the administrative part of the medical staff and create something spectacular.
In closing, have a Happy Holidays, be kind to one another. Be supportive of one another. We have an exciting 2026 to look forward to and with your continued support, we will have a better year.
God Bless,
Your faithful servant,
Edward Pyun Jr. MD