Since Aug. 1 of last year, Shelly M. Johnson of Gloucester has served as president of Riverside Walter Reed Hospital after the retirement of former RWRH president Esther Desimini on June 1.
“I have a long history with Riverside,” she said.
Johnson grew up in Gloucester and started with Riverside at Walter Reed in 1998, where she worked in various administrative positions, including serving as the Director of Finance and Senior Director of Operations.
She transitioned to Riverside Regional Medical Center in Newport News January 2020, where she served as Associate Vice President for Administration.
“It’s a great team,” said Johnson about RWRH. She said that the hospital team is like a family.
One of Johnson’s goals right now as president is to fill positions that are vacant. A lot of health care organizations, including Riverside, have had to use contract labor and Johnson wants to fill those roles permanently.
Johnson said that it is difficult filling nursing positions in general but, more specifically, respiratory and anesthesiology technician roles. The hospital has also faced challenges with inflation and supply chain issues.
Despite these challenges, Johnson is proud of the hospital’s work in providing quality care for its patients. Since the fall of 2019, RWRH has received an A grade for patient safety performance by The Leapfrog Group. RWRH kept this rating even through the COVID-19 pandemic.
The hospital is currently a four-star facility, but is “on the cusp of being a five-star facility,” said Johnson. Five stars is the highest rating a hospital can receive.
Even in difficult moments, RWRH stays on top. According to Johnson, the hospital’s emergency department had 27,000 visits in 2022 and still received good patient satisfaction scores.
One of Johnson’s current projects is to phase in new equipment and enhance services over the next two to five years. The current MRI unit is scheduled to be replaced early next year and will provide better imaging.
“Our goal is to take care of our community in our community,” she said.
Johnson holds a master’s degree in public administration from Troy State University in Alabama and a bachelor’s degree in business from Christopher Newport University.