Franciscan St. Francis Health names operations director for new Carmel medical center

INDIANAPOLIS – Stephen J. Wheatley, R.N., B.S.N., has been named operations director of Franciscan St. Francis Health’s new Carmel Hospital, located in Building B at 12188 N. Meridian St.

Wheatley will bring years of surgical and administrative experience with Franciscan Surgery Center to the development of Franciscan St. Francis Hospital Carmel facility.

Franciscan St. Francis Health Carmel, opening in phases now through April 1, is designed as a short-stay medical center, offering patients a range of inpatient and outpatient services that are easy to access and lower in cost.

The 89,000-square-foot, three-story facility will include a six-bed inpatient unit, inpatient and outpatient surgical suites, a comprehensive imaging center, cardiac testing, physical therapy, oncology infusion therapy, sleep disorders lab and other clinical services, as well as several primary care and specialty physician offices, some of which are already in the building.

Wheatley comes to the Carmel position after serving nearly 10 years as administrator of the Franciscan Surgery Center in Indianapolis. He was responsible for overall direction of all clinical and non-clinical activities at the multi-specialty ambulatory surgery center and its 65 employees. More than 60 surgeons perform approximately 6,300 cases annually at the center.

Previously, Wheatley was a surgical first assistant for Cardiac and Vascular Surgery Associates from 1990-2002, serving six cardiac and vascular surgeons.

He also was surgical first assistant for general, thoracic and vascular procedures with John D. MacDougall, M.D., from 1980-1990.

Wheatley received his bachelor’s degree in nursing from Indiana University School of Nursing in 1980.

He is a member of the Board of Directors, Indiana Federation of Ambulatory Surgery Centers and of the Ambulatory Surgery Center Association.

The Carmel location Wheatley will oversee is expected to create a convenient continuum of care for current and future patients and provides a closer access point for north side residents to Franciscan Alliance hospital services. The Carmel center also advances another goal of the Franciscan Alliance: to provide more care to more patients at lower costs.

Other Franciscan Alliance hospitals in central Indiana are located in Indianapolis, Mooresville, Beech Grove, Lafayette and Crawfordsville.