Rush hospital president to retire

Peter Butler, president of Rush University Medical Center, is retiring after six years at the helm of the Chicago hospital.

Michael Dandorph, Rush executive vice president and chief operating officer, will succeed Butler as president and chief operating officer, combining the positions, effective July 1.

“We are fortunate that Peter will be staying on as chair of the Department of Health Systems Management to help to inspire our health care leaders of the future,” Rush CEO Dr. Larry Goodman said in a statement announcing Butler's retirement.

Rush University Medical Center, a nonprofit academic medical center, is one of four hospitals in the Rush Health network. The other facilities are in Aurora, Oak Park and Kankakee, Ill.

Butler arrived at Rush in 1982 and stayed for a decade, when he was appointed senior vice president and chief administrator officer at Henry Ford Health System in Detroit, the statement said. Then he became president and CEO of Methodist Hospital System in Houston before coming back to the Chicago area to become CEO and president of Rush North Shore Medical Center in Skokie.

Butler returned to Rush University Medical Center in 2004 as executive vice president and chief operating officer. He was named president in 2010.

Dandorph joined Rush in 2013 as executive vice president and executive director of Rush University Hospitals. A year later, he became executive vice president and chief operating officer. He's been responsible for overseeing Rush's hospitals and outpatient services, as well as Rush's strategic plans.

Before his roles at Rush, Dandorph spent 18 years at the University of Pennsylvania Health System.

"Rush hospital president to retire" originally appeared on the website of Crain's Chicago Business.