When Darren McCollem walks the halls of Banner Gateway Medical Center and Banner MD Anderson Cancer Center in Gilbert, he does so with a perspective shaped not just by years in executive leadership, but by his early days at the bedside as a nurse.
McCollem, who became CEO in February, marks his 22nd year with Banner Health this month. His journey began as a new graduate nurse at Banner University Medical Center in downtown Phoenix.
“I started as a new graduate nurse in downtown Phoenix working at Banner University Medical Center and was on a med surg trauma unit,” he said. “The whole time really thought that nursing would be kind of the first step toward PA school, but when I started doing the work of a nurse, I would say it fundamentally changed me.”
