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THERE’s going to be a new CEO in town.

The Guam Memorial Hospital Board of Trustees yesterday announced it has chosen a new hospital administrator and he’s not from Guam.

His name is Joseph P. Verga and he boasts an impressive background in healthcare management.

“Today, it is my pleasure to announce that your Board of Trustees has reached an agreement and selected Mr. Joseph P. Verga as the incoming CEO of the Guam Memorial Hospital,” said board chairman Lee Webber during a staff meeting yesterday notifying the hospital of its decision.

Verga is slated to begin his new job on July 1, taking over the position of interim Administrator Rey Vega, who was appointed to the position in February 2011 after Gov. Eddie Calvo invoked his Organic Act authority and replaced the entire hospital board and management.

Verga is no stranger to Guam. He had previously visited Guam as a Joint Commission consultant when GMH was still in its pursuit of Joint Commission accreditation.

He has been assuming dual roles for at least the last 11 years – as president and CEO for Canadian Medical Placement Services in Ontario, Canada since 2001 and as an expert consultant for the Joint Commission Resources and Joint Commission International in Illinois since 1994.

Verga also served as president and CEO of the Hudson County Department of Environmental and Public Health Meadowview Hospital and Nursing Center for 10 years from 1989 to 1999 in Secaucus, N.J.

He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Rutgers University and a Master of Science from Scientific Lyceum Cavour in Florence, Italy. He also completed five years at the University of Padua Facility of Medicine and Surgery in Padua, Italy.

Track record

According to the Joint Commission Resources website, Verga was responsible for the completion of many major capital projects, such as the construction of new state-of-the-art hospitals; development and implementation of a unique psychosocial rehabilitation model; significant revenue enhancements; and initial hospital certification and accreditation, among other notable accomplishments.

Current GMH CEO Rey Vega said that as the hospital waits for Verga to officially assume his new position, it’s business as usual at GMH. Vega said he has not pondered what he will do after he leaves GMH.

Webber, meanwhile, is enthusiastic about GMH’s new administrator.

“We’re very fortunate to be able to get him. Joseph Verga is a very talented man. He was here when the Joint Commission certified the hospital. He knows the hospital, he knows the island, he knows the politics, he understands the place, and he’s qualified. Put all that together, he’s the perfect guy for us,” Webber said.

Verga’s contract is still undergoing the signatory process, Webber said. All the details of Verga’s contract are still being worked out as it goes through the budgetary process, then over to the Attorney General’s Office and finally on the desk of Gov. Eddie Calvo for approval.

“I don’t anticipate any snags. I don’t foresee any problems,” Webber said.