The number of CEO changes at hospitals and health systems fell 22 percent in February after accelerating the month prior, according to a March 29 Challenger, Gray & Christmas report.
In February, hospitals saw 18 CEO exits, compared to 23 in January. The most recently recorded exits mark a 29 percent increase from the 14 recorded in February 2022. Year to date, hospitals saw 41 CEO exits, up almost 58 percent from the 26 announced through February last year.
"We will likely continue to see increased CEO exits in hospitals as they recover from the pandemic, consolidate, and respond to both worker shortages and increased costs," said Andrew Challenger, senior vice president of Challenger, Gray & Christmas.
According to a March 28 report from Kaufman Hall based on data from more than 900 hospitals, hospital finances are starting to stabilize as razor-thin margins become the new normal. Contributing factors to hospital finances include labor shortages, higher material expenses and more patients seeking care outside of inpatient settings.
Across all industries, CEO exits surged in February, which the executive coaching firm said suggests that "companies are gearing up for a lot of change in the coming months." The number of CEO changes rose 49 percent from 112 in January to 167 in February. The latest month also marks the highest monthly total since 219 CEO exits in January 2020.