Although the C-suite typically commands the spotlight for its actions, behind the scenes, hospital and health system board members do plenty of heavy lifting, particularly when turnover occurs among senior leadership.
There is no more critical board responsibility than replacing departing top executives. In their search for successors, board members must find the right match for the hospital's culture and community, often an arduous task. But board challenges don't end there. Responsibility for confronting—and working to remedy—a hospital or health system's financial or reputational problems falls to board members, as well as planning for growth. The trustees profiled on the following pages have met these issues head-on.
