Page 226 - South Mississippi Living - June, 2018

THEFINALSAY
BUTCH OUSTALET
story by Mozart Dedeaux as a tribute to Butch Oustalet
Butch Oustalet has been an iconic and successful business leader along the Mississippi Gulf Coast for more than
four decades. During his tenure in the world of auto
sales, he has successfully run multiple dealerships and
has spent countless hours in the community promoting
the well being of the citizens of the Gulf Coast. Butch
and his family have been implementing charity work and performing philanthropic activities in our area for many years — most of them anonymously. At the core of this activity is Butch’s Christian faith and his desire to help the quality of life for those around him. Whether it’s helping individuals mentally, spiritually, or physically, Butch has always played an active role in health care across the Coast and throughout Mississippi.
During his long and impressive career, Butch has served on countless committees and boards. One of which is the Memorial Hospital at Gulfport Board where he has actively participated for the last nine years. His strong commitment to Memorial stems from his belief that the hospital and the care it gives is a vital and important need for the citizens of the state. Consequently, his ultimate goal is to help guide and direct the hospital to take care of people in a high quality manner and continue to make it a great asset for all.
Through his business dealings, Butch has had a connection to the medical community and the high caliber physicians who practice here. Butch feels that many of the doctors, nurses, and staff at Memorial and other hospitals on the Coast are among the best in the world and he
wants to keep them here. He also knows how difficult it can be for physicians to make a fair income because of federally and state implemented regulations related to care giving, and the rising cost of providing services to the underprivileged.
Because of this, Memorial has involved their doctors in the decision making process via a doctor-elected Physician Advisory Board. This move has created many positive and rewarding achievements for the general operation of the hospital because the doctors have a direct impact on major healthcare decisions that the board establishes. Many of
these decisions revolve around costs and how they may affect citizens who need the most assistance.
The current financial regulations that have been implemented by state and federal governments severely limit the funding available for hospitals to treat uninsured or under insured citizens. Butch brings his business experience to Memorial to help the hospital deal with the rising costs of medical care while continuing to provide outstanding and first rate health care for all.
Through hard work and a commitment to God, Butch knows he has been blessed after 40 successful years in the car industry. Because of this, he feels obligated to give back to the community by blessing others any way he can. This is the main reason he is dedicated to helping further the success of Memorial Hospital; he knows it can only create many more positive outcomes for the citizens of the Mississippi Gulf Coast.
226 SOUTH MISSISSIPPI Living • June 2018
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