As CEO of Truman Medical Centers, John Bluford has received numerous awards for hospital management. Under his leadership, Truman was recognized as one of the top five academic medical centers int he U.S. by the University Health System Consortium, and Bluford is credited with bringing several innovative programs, like the TMC Corporate Academy, to Truman and the community. In July 2014, Bluford will retire as CEO, but his work is far from over.
“I hope to be intimately involved in the Bluford Healthcare Leadership Institute. That’s the real deal!,” Bluford says about the initiative he created last year. The program brings undergraduate college students – primarily from historically black colleges and universities like Fisk, Morehouse and FAMU – to the Truman campus for a 10-12 leardership experience where they learn about healthcare from prominent local and national C-level executives.
Bluford is very excited about the future of the healthcare industry after seeing these students: “One of the things that’s different about them and my generation is that they have a worldwide view of things, and unlike us, they can do research on a snap of a finger.”
READ: BlackDoctor.org Announces The “Top Blacks In Healthcare” 2014 Award Recipients
In addition to staying hands on with the Leadership Institute (he interviews every applicant), he will continue to serve on several local and national boards, and continue raising funds for a full-service grocery store being built about nine blocks from the Truman campus.
Long before it was called health, wellness and fitness, Bluford was always active and away from work he’s an avid tennis player. “I always say three times a week, which ends up being two times a week,” he jokes.
Congratulations, Mr. Bluford, for being a “BlackDoctor.org Top Blacks in Healthcare” 2014 honoree!