Paul L. Usher served as President / CEO of Marion General Hospital for eight years, after 20 years as Chief Financial Officer, and six years prior to that in financial services, retiring in 2016. During his tenure leading MGH, the hospital experienced significant growth, in a time when many other smaller community hospitals were being bought out by conglomerates, and solidified itself as an important community partner through philanthropy and service.
He graduated from Marion High School with the first class out of the new (at the time) 26th Street campus. He took pride in this heritage, throughout his life introducing himself as “a proud south-side Marion kid”. He went on to earn his bachelor’s degree in accounting from Ball State University.
When he joined the staff of Marion General Hospital in 1968, he was the only staffer with a college accounting degree. The books had been left unbalanced and the accounting system in place was lacking, so it was up to Mr. Usher, 23 years old at the time, to take the lead. He left MGH in 1975 but stayed active in the healthcare industry through various positions. He returned to MGH in 1988 as CFO. Then, after two decades in that role, he stepped up to the role of President CEO of Marion General Hospital, overseeing more than 1,500 employees with $64 million in salaries, serving more than 1 million patient visits in a typical year — patients that he revered as family, friends, and neighbors.
As a nonprofit community hospital, Mr. Usher took seriously the hospital’s duty to give back to its community. During his tenure, it became a vital part of Marion and Grant County, providing donations to various causes, including the effort to save the Memorial Coliseum and turn it into a modernized YMCA for the community, the purchase of a fire truck and 20 new police cars for the City of Marion, and many other worthy projects and programs.
Marion General Hospital’s independence and commitment to the community is even more notable in a time when many small hospitals throughout the state have been swallowed up by large health care networks. This ability to remain independent and locally based is due in large part by financial decisions made by Mr. Usher during his time as CFO and President / CEO.
In addition, he worked during his time at MGH to solidify partnerships with various health care entities in the area, including the insurance company Anthem and the mental health and social service agency Family Service Society Inc., and he was a major player in the creation of Bridges to Health, a free clinic providing medical services to the uninsured and underserved in Marion and Grant County. He also worked to bring talented physicians to Marion, believing that his community deserved the best.
Mr. Usher and his wife, Marsha, took the duty to give back seriously in their personal lives as well. They have given of their time, talent, and treasure to innumerable non-profits throughout the community, including to Marion Community Schools in support of the Giants in many ways, often quietly and behind the scenes. He served on the board of Family Service Society, in roles including President, Vice President, and Treasurer; he was President of Sweetser Lions Club; and he has at various turns served as President, Vice President, Treasurer, and Secretary of the Indiana Chapter of the Healthcare Financial Management Association.
He has received many honors and awards, including the History Award from Family Service Society, and from HFMA, the Stanley A. Pressler Award and the Medal of Honor Merit Award, among several others. He was honored with the Sagamore of the Wabash, the highest honor the Governor of Indiana can present to a Hoosier. He was also honored with a U.S. Congressional Proclamation by U.S. Rep. Susan Brooks.
Throughout it all, his personal motto rings: “Do the right thing, because it is the right thing to do.”