Persons visiting the emergency room at St. John’s Lutheran Hospital likely will see a new face in the mix of health-care providers. 

Dr. Raymond Zurcher has joined the ER Team at St. John’s. 

Board Certified in Emergency Medicine, and a fellow of the American College of Emergency Physicians, Zurcher comes to Libby from San Joaquin Community Hospital in Bakersfield, Calif., where he was the Medical Director of the Emergency Department and the President of Premier Physicians Alliance, a multispecialty IPA (Independent Physician’s Association). 

Zurcher is also the founding Medical Director of the San Joaquin Community Hospital Stroke and Chest Pain Centers.  San Joaquin Community Hospital sees 50,000 emergency visits annually.

Zurcher received his medical doctor degree from Loma Linda University, School of Medicine and completed his three-year residency training in Emergency Medicine at Kern Medical Center in Bakersfield in 1996. 

Persons wouldn’t know by Dr. Zurcher’s humble demeanor that he was quite the medical celebrity in Bakersfield being featured as an “ER Top Doc” in the Bakersfield Magazine in 2007 and the recipient of the Physician of the Year, Mission Award, in 2010.

“It was our good fortune that Dr. Zurcher and his wife, Shelley, were ready to make a change in their busy medical careers,” said Bill Patten, CEO at St. John’s. 

“Dr. Zurcher is a welcome addition to St. John’s; complimenting our ER Team with his vast knowledge and experience in Emergency Medicine, Stroke, and Chest Pain.”

Zurcher was very impressed with the facilities at St. John’s.  “I am so impressed by the level of technology and the multitude of services that are offered at St. John’s,” said Zurcher. 

“Many of the services offered here mirror the services that I had available to me in bigger cities.  It is so unusual to see technology like MRI and 24-hour ultrasound at a Critical Assess Hospital.  Not to mention the technology that enables us to receive input from outside consultants when our experts are not available.  Our communities are very fortunate to have these services.  I feel honored and privileged to be here.”

The Zurchers have been searching for the “right” place to call home since 2006. 

“Our search took us from Vermont to California,” said Zurcher before settling on Libby.