LEXINGTON, KY.  — Paul Betz was working on a business degree and playing football for Lambuth University in Jackson, Tenn., when he began to really consider his career plans.

“My dad, in talking to me and my brother about the future, kind of advised us not to go into the family business,” recalled the Memphis native.

The woodworking business, founded decades earlier by his great-grandfather, was, at one time, the largest distributor of folding stairs east of the Mississippi River.

But Betz said his father, the third generation to work for the business, recognized change in the air.

“Dad saw the market becoming more marginalized and more competitive,” he said. “He recommended we find something else – something that would always be around in some way, shape or form.”

Betz’s initial thoughts included a career in insurance, hotel motel management or even the funeral business.

When he received a summer internship at a children’s hospital in Memphis, however, a future in healthcare administration became the frontrunner.

“I did rotations in different departments and watched how each one functioned,” he recalled. “It just really piqued my interest.”

After a second summer interning at the same hospital, Betz said he knew he was headed in the right direction.

Upon graduation, he took another internship position at the Regional Medical Center of Memphis, until he began pursuing his Master of Business degree at the University of Alabama at Birmingham.

Any doubt as to his future, he said, was settled by then.

“I loved the energy of the hospital and the work being done by smart, passionate, mission-driven people,” he said. “I knew I wanted to be in healthcare administration. It just felt a little bit more important than any other career I could have chosen.”

Betz’s first experience in management came during his administrative residency at Memorial Regional Hospital in Hollywood, Fla.

“That was when I knew I eventually would like to become a CEO,” he said. “I just really enjoyed the accountability and the feeling that I was having the biggest impact possible.”

Betz accomplished that goal five years later when he moved back to western Tennessee and began an 11-year stretch during which he worked as a CEO or administrator at four different hospitals within the Baptist system.

“It was a very well run and well thought of organization that allowed me to see, firsthand, how high-caliber hospitals really ran,” he said. “It was an excellent experience and good training.”

From there, Betz was named COO/Senior Vice-President for Maury Regional Health in Columbia, Tenn.

“The COO responsibility requires a different type of style,” he said of the system position to which two hospitals reported. “ You have to extend support and trust and support the people on-site. Again, it was another great experience.”

But again, opportunity knocked as he moved to Tuscaloosa, Ala., where he was named COO of DCH-Health System, an independent, community-owned three hospital system.

In that position, Betz served as the administrator for a 583-bed facility as well as the direct report for the CEOs of two small hospitals.

“It was another great experience,” he said. “But then this position at ARH presented itself.”

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Betz assumed the role of ARH COO in August 2022, just weeks after floodwaters decimated much of eastern Kentucky.

“I was certainly paying attention to the news and watching what was going on,” he said, recalling photos and videos of both the devastation and the response. “I remember watching the reaction of ARH, from its leadership and the employees, and being very impressed.”

The response, he said, wasn’t entirely unexpected based on his experiences during the interview process.

“I saw that it was a very mission-driven organization,” he said of his initial visit. “Everyone was very committed – not just talking about it but living the mission day in and day out.

“That’s really why I decided to come here.”

The rolling hills and mountains of Appalachia are much different than the flat Delta farmland Betz grew up with in western Tennessee. But though the geography is different, he said the job is much the same.

“Everybody’s got their challenges,” he said. “The challenges I found ARH to be dealing with were not drastically different than what I encountered in Tuscaloosa. All organizations are dealing with pressures caused by the pandemic and how the world has changed because of it.”

And though the challenges are similar, Betz said ARH’s response is, in many ways, quite different.

“I think ARH is more progressive and interested in exploring different ways of delivering care,” he said. “I found that to be very exciting right from the start.”

As COO, Betz is responsible for the financial, quality and satisfaction outcomes of the hospitals, home health, durable medical equipment and pharmacies.

It’s a big job, but Betz said he has drawn upon his experiences to help implement a structure to improve “systemness” across the board.

“That means, instead of having hospitals operate independently, we look at what we can do to work together and become a strong, unified system,” he said. “There’s power in systemness.”

Betz mentions “Triple Aim,” a balanced approach to healthcare focusing on finances, quality and patient experience.

“It’s not just about finances,” he explained. “It’s about making sure we’re very intent about our patient outcomes and working hard to ensure our patients are very satisfied with the care they are receiving.”

Another change Betz helped navigate is a move away from dependency on contract labor.

“In December 2022, we had 452 contract labor nurses in our system,” he said. “Contract nurses provide a great service when they’re needed, but we just couldn’t afford it. We were headed toward unbelievable losses, so we had to change the way were doing things.

One of the changes, he said, was a reinvestment in staff.

“Which is always the right thing to do,” he said. “We’re investing in renovations that make sense, particularly in our operating rooms, so that we can provide great experiences for both our patients and for our staff.”

The changes, Betz said, are paying off and, with diligence, will continue to do so.

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Betz speaks fondly of his family’s business – and of the Memphis Folding Stairs that are most likely still in use in many homes throughout the region.

“But I’m glad I listened to my dad,” he said of his decision to pursue a different path.

He said he’s also glad to be working for ARH.

“The people here are special,” he said. “They’re mission-driven, much more so than I’ve ever seen in my career. It’s a cultural thing, I believe. 

They’re committed to their families and to their friends and neighbors and they’ll do whatever it takes to care for them.

“It’s a special place and I’m very happy to be here.”

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Betz and his wife Jackie are the parents of son Ben, 21, who resides and works in Memphis, and daughter Suzanne, 20, a student at Bluegrass Community College.

Get to know Paul Betz

Pets? Gus is a cockapoo. He’s a good old boy.

Favorite song? “It’s a Wonderful World” by Louis Armstrong

Favorite singer? I’m really enjoying Pearl Jam right now.

Favorite Pearl Jam song? I can’t get enough of “Hail, Hail.”

Favorite movie? “The Hunt for Red October”

Morning or night? Morning, for sure! I’m usually done thinking by about 9 at night.

Who would play you in a movie? Hmm. I haven’t thought about that one. Let’s go with Ashton Kutcher.

Favorite book? Lord of the Flies

Sweet or savory? Sweet! I like cheesecake a lot!

Favorite hobby? I do a lot of road biking.

What are you streaming? I like to tinker with my bikes, so I watch a lot of bike videos on YouTube. Does that count as streaming?

What is one thing people would be surprised to know about you? I competed in a 62-mile race in Phoenix. I think people would be surprised to know how far it was. 

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Appalachian Regional Healthcare (ARH), is a not-for-profit health system operating 14 hospitals in Barbourville, Hazard, Harlan, Hyden, Martin, McDowell, Middlesboro, Paintsville, Prestonsburg, West Liberty, Whitesburg, and South Williamson in Kentucky and Beckley and Hinton in West Virginia, as well as multi-specialty physician practices, home health agencies, home medical equipment stores and retail pharmacies and medical spas. ARH employs approximately 6,700 people with an annual payroll and benefits of $474 million generated into our local economies. ARH also has a network of more than 1,300 providers on staff across its multi-state system. ARH is the largest provider of care and the single largest employer in southeastern Kentucky, and the third-largest private employer in southern West Virginia