Mercy Health — Springfield announces that after 18 years of administrative leadership service, Chief Medical Officer Don Johnson, MD has announced his retirement effective by the end of the year.
Dr. Johnson made the decision to retire so that he can enjoy time with his family and at his home in Montana.
“While I am sad to know that a leader of Dr. Johnson’s caliber is leaving us, I’m pleased that his decision to retire will mean that he can spend more time with his wonderful family,” said Adam Groshans, President, Mercy Health – Springfield. “We are grateful for Dr. Johnson’s many years of service to our community and are searching for his successor. Dr. Johnson has agreed to stay on with us while he transitions his role to our new Chief Medical Officer.”
“We are blessed to have strong physician leadership with Drs. Joseph Morman and Paul Buchanan agreeing to assume Dr. Johnson’s role.”
Dr. Johnson earned his Doctor of Medicine degree from the University of Illinois in 1971 and has been a beloved fixture in Springfield since 1990, serving first as a Board Certified OB/GYN in private practice for more than 20 years before assuming a number of roles at Springfield Regional Medical Center, including President of the Medical Staff, Chairman of the Surgical Case Review Committee and Chairman of the OB/GYN department before becoming Chief Medical Officer in 2001.
He has been actively involved in the community in addition to serving on Mercy Health – Springfield’s leadership team, where he as the liaison between the medical staff and administration. In addition, he has served on the Board and been an active member of the Mercy Health Foundation of Clark Champaign Counties for more than six years.
His career is a distinguished one and includes service as a legislative delegate to the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists for the state of Montana. He was active duty Army Medical Corps from 1976-1978.