LYNCHBURG, Va. – Things are shaking up at Centra Health in Lynchburg a day before the new CEO begins.
According to a recent email, changes and cuts are happening at the hospital and this includes top leadership.
Michael Elliot, the interim CEO, tells 10 News it may look like a shake-up, but it's a process that been in the works for several months.
In the email Elliot tells employees the company is restructuring to be more sustainable and financially strong.
Elliot says, that in order to be more competitive in the health field the company realized there were areas where improvement was needed.
This meant cutting or consolidating administrative positions.
He said this includes managers, directors and executive directors across the entire organization.
On Tuesday, Elliot said, fewer than 20 positions were cut or consolidated. Since last month, close to 30 positions changed.
This comes a day before the new CEO, Dr. Andrew Mueller, is expected to start.
"This seems like an event right now, but it's really us changing the way that we manage the organization. So from here on we will always be comparing ourselves, as we add or take away positions. We'll be comparing ourselves against other organizations across the country. So this (is) the norm for us moving forward," Elliot said.
You can read the full email below.
"Teammates,
In our last organizational update, I communicated with you about our financial position and the recent benchmarking study along with span of control results. I messaged we would be using this data to “effectively align our organization with our benchmark and place ourselves back in a strong financial position.” We took our first step by restructuring our executive team the first part of April. It was important to establish the expectation when change comes, we start at the top.
I also stated we would be taking additional steps to address our finances and restructure for sustainability moving forward. We have utilized the current benchmarking and span of control data to drive informed decisions for our future. We must position our organization for a competitive seat in the healthcare market. And, sometimes, that comes with very difficult decisions.
In the spirit of transparency, you need to know we will be taking steps to further restructure across the organization. These changes will come in the form of reclassification, others in the form of consolidation and unfortunately, there will be some that result in elimination. These decisions are hard but necessary.
I deliver this message with a heavy heart. Each of you is a valuable part of our team. You are our teammates, our colleagues, our leaders and we are grateful for your contribution. This has been an incredibly difficult process for our leadership team and we have taken great care to assess each aspect of our organization. Every decision has come with great thought and consideration.
We have spent much of the last few weeks finalizing plans. Tomorrow we will begin implementing these plans and notifying impacted teammates. We anticipate work around these plans will continue for the next couple weeks. These impacts are not personal, although it may feel that way, so I ask you to please support one another in this time of transition.
Our team has a history of innovation, success and strength. I am confident in our abilities to walk through current difficulties without wavering in our commitment to our patients and to each other. We must preserve the good things we have in difficult times – our passion for what we do, our care for our others and the good work done here each day to improve the lives of those around us.
Sincerely,
Michael Elliott"