Board members and staff with Wrangell Medical Center (WMC) met last week to begin the search for a new hospital head. Interim CEO Marla Sanger last month announced her intention to step down on October 30, and contractor PeaceHealth has indicated it will not continue its management contract with WMC.
“This was new to us, and we wanted to explore the options that we have,” explained Barb Conine, the board’s treasurer.
The executive meeting was called specially, as the board’s regularly-scheduled meeting on June 17 was cancelled. Meeting at the Nolan Center July 2, board members decided they would try advertising for a month through four professional journals before resorting to a “headhunting” service or recruitment agency.
This approach is partly cost conscious, as agency fees can be pricey.
“You don’t start out with your most expensive option,” Conine said. “We’re trying to be prudent with the money we have.”
She explained new hospital financial officer Doran Hammett will look into costs and present his findings at the next board meeting next Wednesday.
During the month-long campaign, Conine explained board members will have sufficient time to examine a trio of recruitment agencies Sanger recommended. These include Don Whiteside of HFS Consultants, Amy Jensen of the Healthcare Initiative, and KLKingsley, a consultancy based in Walnut Creek, Calif.
“There was a lot there to absorb,” Conine said of the agencies’ packets.
While the board plans ahead for the possible second phase of the search, Sanger will handle any applications the advertisements may garner. Any candidates will then be presented to the hospital board at its August meeting.
Sanger was initially brought aboard in November 2012 as part of PeaceHealth’s leadership contract with Wrangell’s hospital, though she stayed on past the planned yearlong duration. In a media release last month, PeaceHealth explained Sanger’s departure will mark the end of the its leadership contract with WMC.
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