Mount Sinai Health System has promoted its chief operating officer, Margaret Pastuszko, to president, making her the first female president of a large academic health system in New York, according to Mount Sinai.
The move comes amid a handful of leadership changes the New York health system's board announced Monday. The board said the changes are designed to better position Mount Sinai to weather future challenges.
Among them: Dr. Kenneth Davis will continue to serve as CEO through the end of 2024. After that, he'll stay on as a strategic advisor through 2027.
Dr. Dennis Charney will continue in his role as Anne and Joel Ehrenkranz Dean of Mount Sinai's Icahn School of Medicine and the health system's president for academic affairs until the end of 2025.
Pastuszko joined Mount Sinai in 2000 as director of strategic planning and implementation for Mount Sinai School of Medicine, and from there moved into positions involving analytics, operations and strategy. More recently, as executive vice president, COO and chief strategy officer, she led Mount Sinai's response to the COVID-19 pandemic, including expanding surge capacity, balancing patient loads and supporting the hardest-hit hospitals.
As president and COO, Pastuszko will lead the health system's operations, including setting long- and short-term goals and maintaining overall viability.
A 2020 Modern Healthcare analysis found few women lead the country's largest not-for-profit health systems, and they tend to make less than their male peers.
Davis became CEO of the Mount Sinai Medical Center in 2003 and CEO of the health system upon its formation in 2013. Mount Sinai's news release said he has successfully led the system through an "era of unprecedented growth and change."
Charney became dean of Icahn Mount Sinai in 2007. A press release said both he and Davis have led the organization through "unprecedented challenges" related to the pandemic and empowered clinical and research teams to implement new strategies and discover new breakthroughs.
Mount Sinai board co-chairs, Richard Friedman and James Tisch, welcomed Pastuszko to her new role and thanked Davis and Charney for their continued guidance in a joint statement.
"All three are extraordinary leaders and we are certain that with this executive leadership team in place, Mount Sinai will continue to thrive, to grow, and to pursue greater equity, service, and innovation remaining steadfast in our mission to provide compassionate patient care through unrivaled education, research, and outreach into the many diverse communities we serve," they said.
Mount Sinai Health System improved its financial position in the first half of 2021 compared with the same period in 2020, which includes the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. The system recorded $100 million in operating income on $1.7 billion in revenue in the six months ended June 30, 2021, a 6% margin. That's compared with $20 million in operating income on $1.6 billion in revenue in the comparable 2020 period, a 1% margin.
The health system recorded about $209 million in federal Provider Relief Fund grants in 2020. It did not record any grant funding in the first half of 2021.
