Rob Followell, Chilton Medical Center’s CEO and health administrator, is resigning on July 18. He will be moving to Greenbriar Valley Medical Center in Ronceverte, W.Va. He will begin his tenure there on Aug. 4.

Followell began his career in health administration as a social worker in hospitals. He said he always had a love for medicine and business so he received his master’s degree in health administration at the University of Kentucky and has been chugging along ever since.

“God’s been with me through my career the whole way,” Followell said. “I’ve been in the right place at the right time.”

He has been an employee of Sunlink Health Systems for seven years and spent the last 15 months at the Chilton Medical Center.

Followell is credited with raising the bar at Chilton Medical Center and making some positive changes that not only affected the hospital, but the community as well.

The biggest change was uniting the hospital and medical staff to form a community within the walls of the hospital. He also was able to provide investment opportunities to the doctors of the CMC so that each doctor could actually have a say in how the hospital was running.

“We built trust and delivered everything that was promised,” Followell said.

Followell also gained the trust of Chilton County. Many people refused to go to the hospital for treatment before he made the internal changes.

“We had a good hospital, but nobody believed it was a good hospital,” he said. “[Patients] are treated like family and neighbors here.”

Followell said he is pleased with his time at CMC, and that he knows Sunlink Health Systems will find another good administrator to take the hospital to the next level.

“This is a great hospital, a great staff and [these are] great doctors,” he said as his last words to the hospital. “It was my opportunity to help a struggling hospital, and turn it around.”