Wright Memorial Hospital welcomes Byron Thornton, MD, to hospitalist staff

Wright Memorial Hospital is pleased to welcome hospitalist Byron Thornton, MD, to the medical team. Hospitalists are physicians and advanced practice providers who specialize in hospital-based care. They coordinate all aspects of care for patients who are in the hospital. The hospitalist, along the patient’s primary care provider and other specialists involved with treatment, work as a team to ensure the patient receives the right care in a timely manner. Dr. Thornton will be joining the hospitalist staff in March. He joins Dr. Maureen Weber, who joined the hospitalist team in 2019, as the second physician within the program.

Prior to joining Wright Memorial, Dr. Thornton earned his medical degree from the University of Missouri School of Medicine in Columbia, MO. He completed his residency in 2012 at the University of Missouri- Kansas City. Dr. Thornton has most recently worked as a section chief for Veterans Affairs in Kansas City. He is a member of the American Board of Internal Medicine.

“Dr. Thornton was born and raised in northwest Missouri and understands what life is like in rural Missouri,” said Steve Schieber, Wright Memorial Hospital CEO. “The challenges of rural health care can sometimes be a little different from the challenges of health care in the city, which is just one of many reasons Dr. Thornton will fit in so well with our team and our community. Having two outstanding doctors working alongside our excellent team of advanced practice providers and our entire clinical staff in the inpatient unit will help ensure our patients continue to receive high quality, expert care in a timely manner.”

Dr. Thornton is also a Lieutenant Colonel in the Army National Guard, where he has oversight over twenty physicians in the state of Missouri. He and his wife, Danielle, have four boys: Bryson, Jackson, Jenson, and Harrison. In his free time, Dr. Thornton enjoys spending time with his family outdoors on their small hobby farm.

Wright Memorial Hospital is a member of Saint Luke’s Health System, which consists of 16 area hospitals and several primary and specialty care practices, and provides a range of inpatient, outpatient, and home care services. Founded as a faith-based, not-for-profit organization, our mission includes a commitment to the highest levels of excellence in health care and the advancement of medical research and education. The health system is an aligned organization in which the physicians and hospitals assume responsibility for enhancing the physical, mental, and spiritual health of people in the metropolitan Kansas City area and the surrounding region.