ILWACO — After seven years at the helm of Ocean Beach Hospital and Medical Clinics, and a career that spans more than 40 years in healthcare administration, OBH CEO Larry Cohen is calling it a career.

Cohen officially announced last week that he is retiring from his post effective July 29, although his intent to retire had been known for months and a search for his successor has been underway.

In a May 5 memo to employees, Cohen announced his successor will be Scot Attridge, who most recently has been chief financial officer at Willapa Harbor Hospital in South Bend. Cohen said Attridge’s first day in his new OBH position will be June 13. Attridge worked at OBH briefly in 2008.

Cohen and the new CEO are expected to have a six-week overlap before his final day late next month, to help smooth the transition.

“Larry’s passion, intelligence, hard work, and expertise in healthcare management have strengthened all aspects of Ocean Beach Hospital and Medical Clinics,” said board Chair Nancy Gorshe in a news release. “He has secured a brilliant future for OBHMC and for the individuals it serves so that they can continue to get high-quality medical care close to home.”

Cohen joined OBH as its chief operating officer in July 2015, and was named interim CEO shortly after that. In August 2016, he was named CEO and Superintendent of OBH.

“Supporting patient safety and the delivery of quality care have been my overarching goals,” Cohen said in the release. “To achieve them, Ocean Beach Hospital and Medical Clinics has been returned to financial health and is prepared to make advancements to best serve the healthcare needs of our constituents.

“I’m confident, having made positive strides in meeting these goals and with a strong, dedicated, and talented team in place, that when I hand over the reins in July, OBHMC is positioned for a very bright future.”

Cohen owned LJC Consulting prior to joining OBH, contracting for project work by OBH and other healthcare providers in southwest Washington and the Portland area. Cohen also previously spent 13 years with PeaceHealth in Vancouver, reaching the position of System Director for Growth and Development. His healthcare career began at OBH in 1983, as a W.K. Kellogg International Administrative Fellow under the then CEO, Don Stubsten.

During Cohen’s time as CEO, OBH opened a new clinic in Ocean Park, relocated the Naselle clinic to a new and bigger site and opened the Wellness and Rehabilitation Center in Ilwaco. OBH has also secured loans totaling more than $5 million for capital and IT systems improvement, and last year received $309,000 in state funds to go toward the renovation of its Ilwaco clinic.

The loans were used to acquire an electronic health record system, replace major equipment and make upgrades at the hospital — including the addition of a CT-128 scanner, a 3D-mammography machine, two radiology rooms, a portable X-ray machine, and an ultrasound machine.

The Observer will have additional coverage on Cohen’s retirement, and his successor, in coming weeks.