Dr. Scott Boston, the chief medical officer of Passavant Area Hospital and an emergency medicine physician, has been approved by the hospital’s board of directors to serve as the next president and CEO of Passavant Area Hospital. He begins June 3.

Boston succeeds Harry Schmidt, who has served as Passavant’s CEO since January 2017 and who announced his resignation in March. He will continue to serve as CEO until June 30. Passavant Area Hospital is one of seven affiliates of Memorial Health System in Springfield.

“Dr. Boston has served Passavant in many capacities in recent years, including his most recent post as chief medical officer,” Tom Veith, chair of the Jacksonville hospital’s board of directors, said. “I believe his medical background, coupled with his deep commitment to Passavant and the region, make him the best candidate to lead the hospital at this crucial time.”

Boston was medical director of Passavant’s emergency department from 2012 to 2015 and assistant medical director of the emergency department at Memorial Medical Center in Springfield from 2011 to 2013. He has served on numerous committees at Passavant and has been a member of Passavant’s medical staff since 2004.

“It is a great honor to be able to work in this exciting environment and help fulfill the mission and vision of Passavant Area Hospital,” Boston said. “Healthcare is a particularly dynamic enterprise right now. The rapid advances in technology and diagnostics and treatments coupled with the complexities of healthcare finance mean there’s always something new every day.”

Boston completed his emergency medicine residency in 2003 at OSF Saint Francis Medical Center in Peoria, where he served as chief resident. He earned his doctor of medicine degree from Southern Illinois University School of Medicine in May 2000. He earned a Master of Science degree in animal science in 1996 and a Bachelor of Science degree in agricultural science in 1994, both from the College of Agriculture at the University of Illinois in Urbana.

“Dr. Boston has demonstrated extraordinary leadership and understands the critical role that Passavant plays in improving the health of the residents of Morgan County and the surrounding communities,” Ed Curtis, president and CEO of Memorial Health System, said. “His knowledge about Passavant’s operation and his medical background give him a unique insight into the needs of our patients, physician partners and workforce.”

Boston has served as a clinical assistant professor in the Division of Emergency Medicine in the Department of Surgery at SIU School of Medicine since 2003.

Boston grew up in Athensville, about 20 miles south of Jacksonville, and graduated from Greenfield High School in 1989. He and his wife, Samantha, live in rural Alexander in Morgan County. They have four children, three girls and one boy, ranging from 14 to 23 years old.

“I’ve had the privilege of working with Dr. Boston when he was in the emergency department at Memorial Medical Center,” said Chuck Callahan, executive vice president and chief operating officer of Memorial Health System. “He is a skilled and compassionate physician, which will serve him well in his new role at Passavant and also benefit patients with his focus on patient safety, quality of care and improving the health of the community.”