HCA Florida Healthcare Announces KC Donahey as Chief Executive Officer of HCA Florida Fort Walton-De

Fort Walton Beach, Fla. – HCA Florida Healthcare announced today the appointment of Kenneth ‘KC’ Donahey as chief executive officer of HCA Florida Fort Walton-Destin Hospital, effective Feb. 1, 2025. In his new role, Donahey will oversee the 331-bed hospital in Fort Walton Beach, which has served the community for over 50 years. He will also oversee the hospital’s freestanding emergency rooms in Destin and Navarre.
 
“KC brings a wealth of leadership experience as well as a proven track record of operational excellence and advancements in the delivery of care for our patients,” said HCA Healthcare North Florida Division President Brian Cook. “We are excited for KC to join the HCA Fort Walton-Destin Hospital family and look forward to continued growth in advanced treatment options and key service areas for the communities we serve.” 
 
Donahey has more than two decades of experience in healthcare, having served in various leadership roles at HCA Healthcare.
 
“I look forward to joining the exceptional team at HCA Florida Fort Walton-Destin Hospital and working to expand our services and attract top talent, ensuring we provide outstanding care for our local community," stated KC Donahey, CEO of HCA Florida Fort Walton-Destin Hospital. "With a legacy of impactful contributions over the past 50 years, I am confident we will achieve even greater milestones together.”
 
Donahey comes from HCA Florida Healthcare’s Oviedo Medical Center, where he had served as the hospital’s CEO since it opened in 2017. Through Donahey’s leadership and vision, Oviedo Medical Center undertook multiple hospital expansions and growth initiatives, including developing innovative surgical service lines, while achieving outstanding quality metrics and earning top patient, colleague, physician and board of trustee engagement. Oviedo Medical Center continues to achieve top physician engagement, placing the hospital among the top performers across the North Florida Division’s 15 hospitals. 
 
During his tenure at Oviedo Medical Center, Donahey led the development of six robotic surgery programs while significantly increasing elective surgical volumes. Most recently, Donahey oversaw an $80 million capital expansion which doubled the hospital’s operating room capacity, expanded the intensive care unit, added a new medical/surgery floor, and opened two new freestanding emergency rooms this year. 
 
Donahey advanced a strategic and robust agenda on quality care while at Oviedo Medical Center, with notable outcomes. Over the past several years, the hospital has received several accolades and awards from independent third-party patient safety ratings organizations, including “A” ratings for multiple years from Leapfrog, four-star ratings from the Centers for Medicaid & Medicare Services, and numerous accolades and recognitions in service lines including orthopedic surgery, cardiac care, gastrointestinal surgery, critical care and surgical care from Healthgrades.
 
Before serving as the CEO of Oviedo Medical Center, Donahey was the chief operating officer at HCA Florida West Hospital in Pensacola from 2013 – 2015. During his tenure at West Hospital, he provided oversight to multiple hospital departments and key service lines. Under Donahey’s leadership, West Hospital expanded multiple service lines, improved the facility’s financial performance, and helped significantly improve physician, colleague, and patient satisfaction metrics. 
 
Donahey also spent nearly 10 years in HCA Healthcare’s Tristar Division, serving as the chief operating officer and ethics and compliance officer at Hendersonville Medical Center and the Associate Administrator at Parkridge Medical Center.  
 
After Donahey completed his undergraduate degree in business, he worked on Wall Street in New York City at UBS Investment Bank before transitioning into healthcare administration.  
 
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V/r,
 
Liz Eulberg
Director, Communications and Community Engagement
 
HCA Florida Fort Walton-Destin Hospital
1000 Mar Walt Drive, Fort Walton Beach, FL 32547
 
HCA Florida Twin Cities Hospital
2190 FL-85 N, Niceville, FL 32578
 
O 850.315.1352  M 850.228.6223 
 
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