Steve Burdick, chief executive of Providence St. Mary Medical Center and Providence Medical Group in Walla Walla, Wash., will retire at the end of the year in a move to slash costs.
Burdick, 60, has served as the chief executive of Providence in Walla Walla since September 2006, parent system Providence Health & Services said in a statement announcing his departure. The chief executive position will be eliminated once he retires. The responsibilities will be distributed among other executives.
“Providence Health & Services is restructuring operations to reduce overhead expenses to operate more affordably, direct resources to patient care, and continue its mission of serving the poor and vulnerable,” the 34-hospital not-for-profit system said in the statement.
“I'm the biggest piece of overhead in Walla Walla,” Burdick told the Wall Walla Union Bulletin. “So it's fair the bureaucrat goes." He also said Providence is having “a tough time” dealing with rising drug costs, Medicaid and Medicare payment cuts and a tight labor market, the Union Bulletin reported.
Medicaid payments were cut by 8% and Medicare funding is also likely to be cut by 2% or 3%, Burdick said. The large majority of patients at St. Mary depend on public insurance.
Lane Savitch, chief executive at Kadlec Health System, will oversee the Walla Walla facility and handle some of Burdick's responsibilities, while senior leaders at Providence St. Mary will take on other duties, a Providence spokeswoman said. In 2014, Providence formed an affiliation with Richland, Wash.-based Kadlec to increase access to services and improve inpatient care at Kadlec.
According to the statement, 142-bed Providence St. Mary “has thrived” under Burdick's leadership. He deepened Providence's community involvement and played a key role in improving access to mental health services in the area and developing a shelter for homeless youth. He also spearheaded an effort to create a community health center at local Lincoln High School to serve at-risk youth, according to the statement.
“It isn't very often you can say you are going out when everything is going really well,” Burdick said in the statement. “I leave with a sense of pride in Providence St. Mary Medical Center. This is a good time for me to step aside and leave the organization in the talented hands of the senior leadership team and medical staff.”
Renton, Wash.-based Providence Health & Services is the fourth-largest healthcare system by 2015 operating revenue, according to Modern Healthcare's financial database. The not-for-profit system recorded total operating revenue of $14.43 billion in 2015.
