Erlanger Western Carolina Hospital names chief financial officer and director of patient safety and quality

Murphy, N.C. – Erlanger Western Carolina Hospital (EWCH) has named Matthew Thomas as chief financial officer and Susie Aft, RN, as director of patient safety and quality.


Matthew Thomas recently served as chief financial officer at Merit Health Natchez in Natchez, Miss., where he oversaw the following departments: accounting, information technology, materials management, case management, admitting, business and health information management. There, he also successfully petitioned for the hospital to gain sole community hospital status with Medicare, a designation by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.

 
Before stepping into the health care sector, Thomas served as senior accountant at one of Tennessee’s largest accounting firms, Lattimore, Black, Morgan & Cain, P.C. Since then, he has held management and leadership positions at Community Health Systems, Inc., in Franklin, Tenn., and San Angelo Community Medical Center in San Angelo, Texas.


Thomas attended the University of Tennessee Knoxville for both his bachelor of science in business administration and his masters of accountancy.


Susie Aft joins EWCH after serving as chief quality officer at Fannin Regional Hospital in Blue Ridge, Ga. In this position, she was responsible for the quality and patient safety program where she oversaw medical staff services, infection prevention and control and risk management.


With over 15 years of experience in health care, Aft has held clinical and leadership positions at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, Murphy Medical Center and MedWest Health System.


Aft received her bachelor of arts from Agnes Scott College, her bachelor of science in nursing from Emory University and her masters of science in nurse administration from Western Carolina University. 

 
“I am pleased to welcome Matthew Thomas and Susie Aft to their new roles,” said EWCH CEO Mark Kimball. “With both having worked in rural hospital settings and their extensive experience in health care management, I believe they are great additions to our team.”