Neon lights in an ER, a nurse precepting a new grad on night shift, a resident presenting rounds before sunrise: Care never pauses in West Florida. Jyric Sims, PhD, president of HCA Healthcare West Florida Division, leads that motion with a focus on access, quality and people.
Dr. Sims took a growing network and pushed reach where families needed it most. Urgent care capacity expanded through an acquisition that grew MD Now from five to 23 locations. New sites of care opened across the region along with freestanding emergency rooms that shorten drive times when minutes matter. Specialty programs advanced too; an institute for endocrine surgery draws patients from across the country and pioneers approaches like scarless thyroid procedures. Investment in modern tools tied hospitals, outpatient centers and physician offices together so teams share information quickly and patients move with fewer hurdles.
Dr. Sims is strengthening pipelines through nearly 1,000 resident physicians in graduate medical education and a larger nursing ladder that begins with pre-nursing partnerships and grows through clinical academies and retention programs. Care transformation initiatives pair evidence with technology, including thoughtful use of generative AI to reduce documentation burden and support clinical decisions. Leadership development and community health investments round out a plan that equips people to deliver better outcomes in every setting.
His path started far from a corner office. Raised in Baton Rouge, Dr. Sims worked his way from humble beginnings to hospital chief executive, then in 2023 into the divisional role serving a complex enterprise with more than 20,000 colleagues. He keeps perspective through a pair of compass lines he often repeats: “When you look back is anyone following” and “We all benefit from the shade of a tree we didn’t plant.” A Titan 100 Honoree, Dr. Sims treats recognition as fuel for service, not a finish line.
Results reflect that mindset. Under his leadership the division delivered more than 1.5 million patient experiences in a year, including hundreds of thousands of emergency visits, while providing $276 million in charity and uncompensated care. Safety and quality measures improved as clinical teams standardized best practices, and engagement rose as employees saw investment in training, mobility and tools that reduce friction. The urgent care expansion gave communities same-day answers and eased pressure on hospital corridors, a practical win felt across the region.
Dr. Sims measures success in moments: a resident who chooses to stay local after training, a nurse who advances through a clinical academy, a family that finds care close to home on a hard day. The five-year vision builds on those moments with a simple charge: Expand access, elevate outcomes and make navigation easier for every person who touches the system. Leadership at scale is the daily discipline to align people, process and purpose so excellent care becomes habit across West Florida.
