Tampa (Fla.) General Hospital tapped John Couris to be its new president and CEO, effective Sept. 1. He is currently president and CEO of Jupiter (Fla.) Medical Center, where he has served as leader since June 2010.
Mr. Couris' previous roles include serving as COO of Morton Plant North Bay Hospital in New Port Richey, Fla., and vice president at Morton Plant Mease Health Care in Clearwater, Fla.
While serving as Jupiter Medical Center CEO, Mr. Couris led the development of partnerships with institutions such as Mount Sinai Hospital in New York City and Nicklaus Children's Hospital in Miami. He also oversaw a $50 million expansion plan, which included medical technology investment, a new pediatric unit and a comprehensive cancer institute.
In September, Mr. Couris will take over from acting Tampa General President and CEO Steve Short. Mr. Short was named to lead the hospital on an interim basis after Jim Burkhart's sudden resignation from the CEO role in November 2016.
A hospital statement did not give a reason for Mr. Burkhart's abrupt departure; however, in an interview in the Tampa Bay Times, Mr. Burkhart said the hospital's board of directors pushed him out of the job, and that the hospital's finances played a role in his being forced to step down.
The hospital's board hired a consultant to conduct the nationwide search for a permanent CEO.
"Tampa General is at a critical juncture in its continuing evolution to become a world class medical center," said John Brabson, chairman of the TGH governing board. "As the teaching hospital for USF Health, the only Level I Trauma Center on the west coast of Florida and a leading safety net hospital in the state, it is critically important that we have the best possible leadership. I am confident we will have that in John Couris."