After 33 years of fulfilling President Lincoln’s mission to care for veterans and their families, James W. Rice, director of the Oscar G. Johnson VA Medical Center here, announced his retirement.
“It has been a great honor to provide healthcare for our veterans,” said Rice. “I am grateful to have worked with so many compassionate staff members who are dedicated to serving our Nation’s heroes and supporting their families.”
Rice was appointed Medical Center Director on April 10th, 2011. The medical center is a primary and secondary level care facility with 17 medical/surgical beds and a 40 bed Community Living Center that provides residential care.
In addition to its inpatient services, the facility provides a large scope of outpatient care and operates eight clinics across its catchment area, serving over 24,000 enrolled veterans in the Upper Peninsula and northern Wisconsin. Rice oversaw all aspects of this level 3 complexity medical center with an annual operating budget of more than $200 million.
Under his leadership, the Iron Mountain VA experienced significant accomplishments in innovation, comprehensive quality care, employee engagement, and patient satisfaction. He mentored team members and empowered his staff to continually improve their daily work. He modeled servant leadership and made transparent, data-driven decisions on behalf of veterans, staff, and taxpayers.
His positive influence is evident in the many awards and honors the facility has received during his tenure, including: 2020 VHA Best Patient Experience Award, 2018 and 2019 Best Experience Awards for Level 3 Medical Center, and 2017 and 2019 Large Business of the Year Awards from the Iron Mountain Chamber of Commerce.
The facility continually receives a 5-star rating from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) for inpatient satisfaction. The community living center has also received 5-star quality ratings using CMS assessment methodology. In addition to the many patient care awards, staff have also continually ranked the facility as a Best Place to Work, as determined nationally by the annual All Employee Survey.
In addition to facility awards, Rice was recognized as one of the recipients of the FY 2021 Meritorious Executive Presidential Rank Award for his sustained accomplishments throughout his career.
The honor represents the top award a civilian federal employee can receive. Rice was also a Certified Mentor Fellow Level for VHA, a member of the Health Care Leadership Institute, a semi-finalist in the Rochester Institute of Technology and USA Today’s Quality Cup Competition as a member of the Strategic Healthcare Group for Occupational and Environmental Health Care Executives and an Outstanding Federal Employee of the Year Award Nominee in the category of Excellence in Management.
The facility has spent over $93 million in construction updates and additions and has experienced significant modernization of technology and progressive growth, during Rice’s tenure. Healthcare services were most recently expanded to Gladstone with an outpatient clinic that provides local healthcare to more than 2,000 veterans. Continued construction will expand both primary and secondary care at the main facility in 2022.
Rice started his career with the VA in January 1990, working as the Chief of Safety at the Detroit Medical Center. He was the Network 11 Safety Manager, responsible for all safety aspects within the Veterans Integrated Service Network (VISN) from May 2000 to October 2006. He then took the position of Quality Management Officer in VISN 11until April 2011, where he was responsible for the development, oversight, coordination, and leadership of all quality and performance programs.
In addition, Rice has served as the Acting Medical Center Director at the Aldea E. Lutz VA Medical Center in 2009; the Edward Hines Jr. VA Hospital in 2012; the Jesse Brown VA Medical Center in 2013; and served as the Acting Network Director, VISN 12 in 2015 and 2019.
“I’m anxious to spend more time with my family and exited to focus on my hobbies,” stated Rice. “It’s been a very fulfilling career and it’s bittersweet to leave a job I have enjoyed, but I appreciate the opportunities I have been given to care for veterans and their loved ones, and the privilege of working with so many incredible people.”
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