John H. Westerman, 87, passed away on March 18, 2021. He graduated from the University of Minnesota with a BS in Law in 1955; a BA in Business Administration in 1958; and a Masters in Hospital Administration in 1960. He had a lifelong career in hospital administration, starting at the University of Minnesota, then Strong Memorial Hospital in Rochester, NY. He returned to the University of Minnesota, becoming the General Director of the University of Minnesota Hospitals and Clinics at age 31. John served as President & CEO of Allegheny Health Services, Inc., in Pittsburgh, from 1982-1985, and; President and CEO of the Hospital of the Good Samaritan, Los Angeles, 1985-1992. He served as CEO of the Hilo Medical Center, 1993-1996, and the Hawaii Health Systems Corporation, 1996-1997.



He served on the Boards of Blue Cross, Blue Shield, MN; NIH-CRC, JCAHO, MN State Board of Health, AAMC-COTH, California Healthcare Insurance Company, Inc., ACEHSA, VHA, Premier Hospital Alliance, UNC, and Healthcare Association of Hawaii.



John was on the Editorial Boards of JME, Health Care Management Review and Frontiers of Health Services Management. He was the author of numerous articles appearing in health policy and health management journals and participated in international health consulting projects and lectures.



John held faculty appointments at the University of Rochester School of Medicine; the University of Minnesota, School of Public Health; the University of Southern California, School of Public Administration; the University of Hawaii School of Medicine and ASU.

John was a champion of quality in patient care, medical education, and research. He was a hospital surveyor for the Joint Commission, a NIH surveyor for Clinical Research Centers, and consulted with the NHS on quality assurance in the UK. He believed in setting high standards, measuring against them, and accountability. John was a co-founder of the University Hospital Consortium (UHC) now part of Vizient. UHC became an important health care thought leadership, performance improvement, and group purchasing organization in the US. John advanced the acceptance of and standards for health care administrative fellowships as a means of developing young management talent in the field. His mentoring of fellows and colleagues led to generations of health care leaders for many teaching hospitals, health systems, and other health care organizations. His impact was both national and multi-generational in scope.



As impressive as John's career was, it is marked by much more than years and titles. It is more accurately measured by the impact he made on patient care, education, and the lives of so many. While at The Hospital of the Good Samaritan alone, John oversaw the development of four Institutes focused on specialty-specific research, education and patient care. He created four centers of excellence and recruited more than 50 world-class specialty physicians and researchers.



He created the highly coveted Westerman Healthcare Administration Fellowship. Those lucky enough to hold this position with John held it for life. Once a Westerman Fellow, always a Westerman Fellow. No matter where career and life took you, John kept up with you, checking in, providing support, and sending articles. He believed in and lived the philosophy of lifelong learning.



John is survived by three sons and two grandchildren. He was preceded in death by Laura Westerman. No memorial service or funeral is planned. The family plans a private ceremony. (Source: ASU Foundation)