This year has brought an exodus of board members from several hospitals. While each situation involves varying factors, they all come as the healthcare board's job gets more complicated amid shifting governance priorities and challenges.
Here are six changes to note, with context.
1. Mark Hoskinson, MD, resigned from the board that oversees Gillette, Wyo.-based Campbell County Health to focus on a clinic he owns. Dr. Hoskinson, who is chief medical officer and owner of Hoskinson Health & Wellness Clinic, stepped down in early October with two years left on his four-year term.
2. Nick Johnson resigned from Weston County (Wyo.) Hospital District's board, which oversees the management and operations of the hospital in Newcastle, Wyo., and other healthcare services provided in the area. Mr. Johnson's term was initially set to end in May 2026, but he stepped down, effective Sept. 8, citing his other time commitments.
3. Nathan Stevenson resigned from the Wabash General Hospital board of directors in September. Mr. Stevenson resigned "to pursue an employment opportunity at the hospital," a spokesperson for the Mount Carmel, Ill.-based hospital told Becker's. His LinkedIn page shows he now serves as vice president of project management and infrastructure at WGH.
4. Wanda Tatom resigned from the board of Salem (Mo.) Memorial District Hospital. The board accepted the resignation Aug. 27 without publicly providing a reason, according to The Salem News. Ms. Tatom was elected to represent District 3 on the hospital board in 2022.
5. Karl Carrier resigned as chair of the board of directors for Vancouver, Wash.-based PeaceHealth in April. Mr. Carrier was appointed chair in 2018, marking the first time in which the PeaceHealth board chair position was held by a lay leader. Carol Aaron was selected as the new chair of the board.
6. Three board members — Jack Strain, board chair; John Garrison, board vice chair; and Robert Carter, finance committee chair — departed Memorial Hospital of Texas County in Guymon, Okla. The board members resigned following a period that included a failed board vote to approve critical short-term funding, according to a Jan. 4 LinkedIn post. The hospital website shows Spencer Leiter as the current board chair and KC Rothschopf as the current board vice chair. The other members listed are John Reid, Caryn Hays, D'Anne King and Erica Velasquez.