The search for a new chief executive officer at Bartlett Regional Hospital will extend well into summer and possibly beyond as the board of directors plans to determine a new set of finalists after two of the three contenders scheduled to be interviewed dropped out late last week, a hospital spokesperson said Monday.
The board met in executive session Saturday to evaluate its options after announcing Thursday the two finalists dropped out, citing personal reasons, just one day before the first in-person interview in Juneau was scheduled. The three finalists were selected from six candidates picked by a recruitment company who then went through preliminary interviews via Zoom.
“The board plans to determine a group of finalists from the larger pool previously interviewed,” Erin Hardin, Bartlett’s director of community relations, wrote in an email interview Monday. “Then the full board will have the opportunity to interview each finalist before their on campus visit. I imagine it will be one to two months before we’ll have finalists on campus given the time it will take to coordinate schedules.”
Furthermore, it is possible additional candidates may be considered since “this remains a dynamic process as our recruitment firm continues to advertise for us to ensure we have a robust, competitive pool to choose from,” Hardin wrote.
Emily Dilley, a hospital CEO in Larkin, Kansas, and Matthew Heyn, a hospital CEO in Delta, Colorado, were the finalists who dropped out. Jeffery Hudson-Covolo, vice president for patient care services and chief nurse executive at a medical center in Porterville, California, remains in contention.
The prolonged search for a new top officer is part of an ongoing leadership turmoil as the hospital has gone through several CEOs the past couple of years, as well as recent departures of other leaders including the chief operating officer and chief financial officer.
• Contact reporter Mark Sabbatini at mark.sabbatini@juneauempire.com.
