Thomas C. Royer, MD
President and Chief Executive Officer
CHRISTUS Health, Irving, TX
BIOGRAPHY
Thomas C. Royer, MD, currently serves as the President and Chief Executive Officer of
CHRISTUS Health which is headquartered in the Dallas Metropolitan area. Sponsored
jointly by the Congregations of the Incarnate Word in San Antonio and the Sisters of
Charity in Houston, CHRISTUS Health is one of the 10 largest Catholic health care
systems in the country, employing more than 27,000 people with total assets of $3.4
billion. The health system consists of 40 hospitals and long-term care facilities and
multiple clinics, as well a myriad of other health programs in more than 60 communities in
Texas, Arkansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, Utah, Georgia, Missouri, and Mexico.
Before joining the CHRISTUS Health family, Dr. Royer served as an integral part of the
Henry Ford Health System in Detroit, as Senior Vice President of Medical Affairs and
Chairman of the Board of Governors of Henry Ford Medical Group, a position he held
from 1994 to 1999. Prior to joining Henry Ford, Dr. Royer had served for two years at
Johns Hopkins Medical Services Corporation and Wyman Park Medical Associates in
Baltimore in a variety of positions, including as CEO, President and Chief Operating
Officer, as well as Vice President of Clinical Operations. He also served for 18 years with
Geisinger Medical Center and Clinic in Danville, PA, holding the posts of Senior Vice
President and Medical Director, after founding the center’s department of emergency
medicine, emergency medicine residency program, the Susquehanna Poison Control
Program, and the Life Flight Helicopter Program.
Dr. Royer has received numerous awards and recognition from his colleagues, including
being named the nation’s outstanding physician executive in 1997 by the Medical Group
Management Association (MGMA) and received their Lifetime Achievement Award in
2004. In addition, Dr. Royer was named the outstanding physician executive by the
American College of Physician Executives in 2000 and in 2005 was named as one of the
top 50 most influential physicians in America as a result of a peer poll conducted by
Modern Healthcare.
His experience not only includes leading the operations of major health systems, but also
extensive experience in developing physician partnerships, community health programs
and services, including the introduction of alternative and complementary medicine. He
has a proven track record of focusing on providing measurable, high quality patient care
while implementing cost reduction. In addition, he has developed streamline governance
processes at CHRISTUS, as well as succession planning, and leadership development
through the CHRISTUS Academy.
Dr. Royer, who is board certified in surgery, received his medical degree from the
University of Pennsylvania after earning an undergraduate degree in science, chemistry and
physics from Pennsylvania State University. He completed his postdoctoral training at the
Geisinger Medical Center and Clinic.