HEPPNER — Morrow County Health District has announced that Ryan Fowler, a former chief executive officer for Lower Umpqua Hospital District in Reedsport on the Oregon coast, assumed the role as CEO for the rural district on Thursday, Jan. 28, according to a press release.

“I’m committed to rural health care — that’s where I’ve spent the majority of my career,” Fowler said in the press release. “After some conversations at home, I thought this would be a really good fit for me and my family.”

Fowler, 42, signed a one-year contract as interim CEO, as current CEO Bob Houser prepares to retire. Houser worked in healthcare for 37 years and spent five and a half years as the district’s administrator, according to the press release.

The health district credits Houser with helping the Irrigon Medical Clinic double in size and capacity. He also helped develop a home health and hospice office with a physical therapy department and drugstore in Boardman, according to the press release.

“I can’t say enough about the staff,” Houser said in the press release. “It’s kind of a bittersweet moment.”

The number of district employees grew during Houser’s tenure, from 80 to 136 full- and part-time employees, the press release said. The district also added a wide range of technology for bone density studies, MRIs, mammograms and ultrasounds during his administration.

“I’m very pleased with the selection the board made. I think Ryan is going to be a fine fit,” Houser said. “He’s personable, he’s knowledgeable, he’s got rural healthcare experience. And I think he’ll keep the district moving forward.”

Fowler, who grew up in Inkom, Idaho, earned a bachelor’s degree in American studies and master’s in public administration with an emphasis on state, local and nonprofit management from Idaho State University in Pocatello. He worked his way through college as a housekeeper and Intensive Care Unit monitor technician at a local healthcare facility, the press release said.

After college, Fowler worked in the healthcare quality and risk department at the Portneuf Medical Center in Pocatello. He then became senior manager of quality and risk management at Banner Health Ogallala Community Hospital in Ogallala, Nebraska, the press release said.

“It was an area where I could see myself being successful,” he said of his first management jobs. “I thought my experience as a front-line worker would be an asset for working on the administrative side of healthcare.”

Fowler and his wife, Kim, have five boys between the ages of 8 and 20. The family enjoys hiking, camping and fishing, and Fowler said he is looking forward to exploring the Blue Mountains in Northeastern Oregon, according to the press release.

Fowler said that his family will join him in Heppner when the school year ends.

“For us, it’s a little bit closer to home in many ways,” Fowler said of moving to Heppner. “(It’s) a little closer to family. And the geology of the area is closer to where I grew up.”