Now that William Haugh is on the job as the new CEO of Logan Memorial Hospital he is ready to hit the ground running.

“There’s a lot of opportunity here,” Haugh said.

Haugh said when he came to interview for the job here in Russellville he was very impressed.

“When I interviewed I saw that the hospital has a great management team and that the hospital board was very good and involved,” Haugh said. “And the facility is in great shape and the medical staff is great.”

All those factors combined with a desire to be a CEO of a hospital and live in a small town were enough to make coming to Logan Memorial an easy choice for Haugh.

Haugh is from South Boston, Va. and got his bachelor's degree at Appalachian State University. He knew he wanted to go into the medical field, and an internship during college convinced him that being an administrator at a hospital was the career for him. He went on to get a masters in health care administration from Virginia Commonwealth University.

While in college, Haugh did his residency in administration at Memorial Hospital in Martinsville, Va., and later became COO of the hospital.

Haugh said he believes his experience at Memorial Hospital of Matinsville will serve him well at Logan Memorial and he looks forward to helping the hospital grow and improve. Like many small-town hospitals, Logan Memorial losses many patients to larger hospitals in bigger cities.

"A lot of the patients here tend to go elsewhere," Haugh said. "I want to prevent that out migration."

"What I'm trying to do is convince people to stay here," he added. He hopes to do that by spreading the word about Logan Memorial's strengths.

Haugh said many people might not realize that Logan Memorial can provide many services offered by larger hospitals. The radiology at LMH is especially impressive, Haugh said.

"Pretty much any imaging you need done can be done here," he said. Even patients who see doctors in other cities can have their tests done at LMH preventing addition travel.

"And the technology here is as good, if not better, than elsewhere," Haugh said. The hospital recently added a top-of-the-line CT scanner and digital mammography scanner.

When people come to Logan Memorial, whether for an outpatient procedure or for a longer stay, Haugh said he wants to make sure they have a positive experience. Being a patient at your local hospital can have many advantages.

"It's an overall better experience," Haugh said. "You're going to be treated by your neighbors. You'll receive more compassionate care here."

As for future plans for the hospital, Haugh said they are looking to expand the emergency room, work more closely with local physicians and bring in more specialists.

Haugh said he is excited about what is going on now and in the future at LMH.

"I want to encourage patients that have been going out of town to at least give us a chance," Haugh said. He said anyone interested in learning more about the hospital and all it offers is welcome to stop by for a tour.