Sovah Health, part of Brentwood, Tenn.-based Lifepoint Health, has gotten rid of the COOs at its Danville and Martinsville, Va., campuses and eliminated both positions, the Danville Register & Bee reported March 13.
Sovah Health-Danville's COO was John Kent, who had been in the role since 2018, while the COO of Sovah's Martinsville hospital had only started in the role March 6, according to the report. The health system is spreading the responsibilities of both COO positions across members of its existing administrative team.
Employees were notified of the changes in a March 10 memo from Steve Heatherly, Sovah Health market president and CEO of the Martinsville hospital, and Spencer Thomas, CEO of Sovah's Danville hospital.
"Like other hospitals and systems nationwide, we continue to be faced with inflationary pressures, workforce challenges and a significant shift in demand for healthcare services," Mr. Heatherly and Mr. Thomas wrote, according to the report. "In this challenging climate, every healthcare system must explore new, and sometimes difficult, ways to manage expenses in this challenging environment."