To many employees, Russell E. Armistead, MBA, former CEO of UF Health Jacksonville, is just Russ. He greeted them in the hallways, during weekly rounds and when he got lunch in the cafeteria. He was at every organizational event celebrating successes, and often announced big changes — the most recent of which was his retirement, effective Dec. 31.

Armistead began his career as a certified public accountant and went on to become the Wake Forest School of Medicine vice president for health services administration. Next, he was named interim chief financial officer and CEO at the Medical College of Ohio in Toledo, Ohio. In 2004, he was recruited to UF Health in Gainesville, but we almost lost him to another opportunity.

Amid negotiations to take an administrative position at Augusta University, then known as Georgia Regents University, Armistead got a call the day after Christmas from David S. Guzick, MD, PhD, president of UF Health.

“He said, ‘Jim Burkhart just called me and resigned.’ He asked if I would consider being CEO here,” Armistead said.

He delayed the other job offer by a few days, but the board of directors had to move quickly to appoint Armistead. They did so six days later. “That was a Friday afternoon and I asked Dr. Guzick when he wanted me to start, and he said ‘Monday,’” Armistead laughed.

Beginning as CEO in January 2013, Armistead quickly set his goals for the organization. His first objective was to improve the patient experience.

“I wanted us to have a collegial, cooperative, friendly staff and for our patients to feel that we not only took care of their medical needs, but that this was a pleasant place to do it,” he said.

Today, all new hires undergo hospitality training as part of employee orientation, which emphasizes the importance of warmly greeting patients and wayfinding. Armistead himself made efforts to be approachable by getting out of his office and rounding, directly asking units what they needed and increasing organizational transparency through the “A Few Minutes with Russ” video series.

Though it wasn’t on his radar at first, Armistead said quality quickly became a priority for him. After his first year at UF Health Jacksonville, the hospital’s Vizient rating dropped to one star. This was due to new scoring metrics and the implementation of Epic software, without establishing a formal review process for its data, which impacts quality scores.

“We had no structured organization around managing quality. It’s not the individual care a provider gives a patient, it’s about the systemic approach,” Armistead said. “We appointed Dr. Kelly Gray-Eurom to help our faculty improve documentation and correct our errors. We were having 25 to 30 urinary tract infections and 25 to 30 central line infections a month, and the standard is zero. We now have zero to three each month as a direct result of our structured approach to quality.”

Armistead believes quality and hospitality will define his time at UF Health. “I think people will remember my emphasis on quality, and think about me as open and available,” he said.

Leon L. Haley Jr., MD, dean of the University of Florida College of Medicine – Jacksonville, has succeeded Armistead as CEO.

“I’m pleased Dr. Haley was selected,” Armistead said. “He’s very good on his feet, pleasant and easy to talk to. He has a lot of experience from Grady Memorial Hospital in Atlanta. I like to think I’m a pretty good listener, and I think he’s even better.”

In retirement, Armistead is looking forward to turning off his alarm clock on weekdays and traveling with friends. He hopes to split time between Jacksonville and North Carolina, and alongside his wife of 50 years, watch their grandchildren grow up.

“I can say with clarity that this is the best job I’ve ever had,” he said. “I love what I do, and if it wasn’t for my age, I would keep doing it. I’ll miss the people, and I’ll miss this place.”