BWMC President and CEO Announces ...( Walker responsible for medical c...),Health

Walker responsible for medical center's dramatic growth and steady

commitment to community over nearly four decades

GLEN BURNIE, Md., Sept. 18 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- After 38 years at Baltimore Washington Medical Center, 15 of those as president and CEO, James R. Walker has announced his intention to retire by June 2008. The announcement was made last night at the BWMC Board of Directors meeting.

(Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20070918/DCTU027 )

"I have spent my entire professional career at this outstanding organization," Walker said. "I am extremely proud of what we have accomplished over the years."

Walker celebrated his 38th anniversary at BWMC on September 17. He began his career at BWMC in 1969, just four years after the hospital -- then known as North Arundel Hospital -- opened its doors. From 1969 to 1977, he was an assistant administrator, and from 1977 to 1992, he was an executive vice president serving as chief operating officer. He was named president and CEO in 1992 and has led the medical center through significant changes and growth during his tenure.

In 1992, when Walker became CEO, the hospital admitted 15,346 patients and treated 44,066 patients in its emergency department. Now, the hospital's emergency department has become one of the state's busiest, treating over 85,000 patients a year. The medical center's admissions have also increased, with 18,366 patients admitted last year.

Walker has overseen several major building projects on the BWMC campus, including five expansions to the emergency department, the addition of a new inpatient building in 1998 and the Tate Cancer Center in 2003. BWMC is currently in the midst of a $117 million expansion project that will add private inpatient beds, increase critical care capacity, expand the emergency department once again, and bring obstetrics bac
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