NYC Health + Hospitals has selected Eric Wei, MD, to serve as the next CEO of the health system's historic Bellevue Hospital in New York City. His appointment is effective Jan. 6, when William Hicks steps down after 11 years in the role.
Dr. Wei is currently senior vice president and chief quality officer at NYC Health + Hospitals, the nation's largest public health system. He is an emergency medicine physician and rotates across the health system's 11 emergency departments. Since joining the organization in 2018, he has led the development of several new programs, including a clinical leadership fellowship. He is also one of the three editors of a new textbook detailing the health system's response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Dr. Wei succeeds Mr. Hicks, who joined NYC Health + Hospitals 30 years ago as a radiographer at the health system's Kings County Hospital. In 2013, he was appointed COO at 851-bed Bellevue Hospital, the nation's oldest public hospital. Under Mr. Hicks' leadership, the hospital earned certification as a level 2 pediatric trauma center, and saw its in-patient volume grow from a pre-pandemic daily census average of 565 to a recent peak of 841.
"From being a port in the storm during the COVID-19 pandemic, providing tests, vaccines, comfort and exemplary medical care, to expanding inpatient and outpatient services to meet community needs, to increasing patient satisfaction scores, we’ve done it all as a team," Mr. Hicks said in a news release. "I am grateful for having the opportunity to bring transformational change to Bellevue Hospital, increasing access to care and services for all New Yorkers, and contributing to the incredible legacy of Bellevue Hospital."