UH Lake Health president Cynthia Moore-Hardy sets retirement

Cynthia Moore-Hardy, the longtime president of UH Lake Health, is retiring at the end of the month.

University Hospitals, which about a year ago absorbed the Lake Health system, announced in a news release on Thursday morning, Feb. 17, that Moore-Hardy will retire effective March 31. She will "continue to serve in a consulting capacity to further assist in the integration process," according to the release.

UH said it will "immediately commence the process to identify her successor."

Moore-Hardy, 64, was president and CEO of Lake Health for nearly 25 years prior to the integration into UH. She "was instrumental in helping to grow and transform Lake Health into a fully integrated healthcare system with 11 facilities, including three acute care hospitals," UH said in the release.

"It's hard to put into words all that Cynthia has done for UH Lake Health and the Lake County community as a whole," said Dr. Cliff A. Megerian, CEO of UH, in a statement. He said she took the lead "in helping to grow and transform Lake Health into a fully integrated system, and her commitment to the health and well-being of the Lake County community will continue to have a profound impact going forward."

UH noted in the release that during her tenure, Moore-Hardy "oversaw major capital investment including the opening of TriPoint Medical Center and Beachwood Medical Center, the Lake Continuing Care Center, as well as several outpatient health centers that spanned three counties."

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Moore-Hardy said in the release, "Few people have the privilege to be a part of something so important, and I consider my years at Lake Health to be one of the greatest honors of my life. As Lake Health nears the one year anniversary of joining University Hospitals, I think now is the time to pass the baton to the next leader."

Moore-Hardy currently serves on the Ohio Hospital Association (OHA) Institute for Health Innovation Board and is a past chair of the OHA board. And in 2020, she served as co-chair of the Ohio Hospital Association Diversity & Equity Task Force. She is a former alternate delegate to the American Hospital Association's Regional Policy Board (Region 5), and a past board chair and trustee of the Center for Health Affairs in Cleveland. Moore-Hardy also serves on numerous local boards, including the Greater Cleveland Food Bank, the Cleveland chapter of the Alzheimer's Association, Holden Forests & Gardens and Ursuline College.

She was recognized on Becker's Hospital Review 2018 annual list of "143 Women Hospital and Healthcare Leaders You Need to Know," as one of Modern Healthcare's "Top 25 Minority Executives in Healthcare" and as a "Distinguished Woman in Healthcare" by the Visiting Nurses Association.

Moore-Hardy's career began as a critical care nurse at St. Luke's Hospital in Cleveland before joining Lake Health in 1988 as assistant administrator, cardiology services. She became president and CEO of Lake Health in 1997.

This story first appeared in our sister publication, Crain's Cleveland Business.