The leadership at Jupiter (Fla.) Medical Center isn't sharing much detail on the circumstances surrounding the abrupt departure of its CEO, who held the position for a little over a year.
Don McKenna took the helm of the 327-bed hospital in January 2018. Late last week, the hospital said in a statement that McKenna and its board of trustees had determined their visions were no longer aligned.
Steven Seeley, who took over as an interim co-CEO while the hospital searches for a replacement, declined to say more in an interview with Modern Healthcare. He characterized it as a mutual decision.
"I don't think it was really one specific subject or service line," said Seeley, the hospital's chief operating officer. "It was more of a general direction."
Jupiter Medical Center is an independent, not-for-profit organization and intends to stay that way, Seeley said.
"We feel it's in the best interest of the community to stay independent," he said.
That's not to say the provider doesn't have big ambitions. It's in the midst of a $300 million fundraising campaign that will expand Jupiter's capabilities in oncology, heart and vascular services, surgery, pediatric services, intensive care and obstetrics.
"We're not for the faint of heart," Seeley said. "We're doing a lot."
The hospital has raised $165 million toward the goal since launching the campaign in 2015.
The facility hasn't set a time frame for having a new CEO in place, but Seeley said the process will take at least several months. He couldn't say whether he or his co-interim CEO, Joanne Miller, would be in the running. Miller is the hospital's chief nursing officer and chief experience officer.
Last month, the hospital ended a partnership with Mount Sinai Hospital in New York announced four years earlier, which was designed to enhance its cardiac patient care and research capabilities. The partnership included physicians sharing best practices, quality protocols and clinical pathways. It allowed Jupiter's physicians access to clinical consults with their Mount Sinai Heart New York colleagues and to use telehealth services for patient assessments. Jupiter's patients also had the option to access Mount Sinai's surgeons.
Seeley and Miller said McKenna's departure was in no way related to the Mount Sinai decision. In the case of Mount Sinai, the providers had different approaches to branding and growing clinical programs, Miller said.
"It just became clear over time that it was really a matter of the value and cultures not being aligned for the growth of clinical programs," she said.
Jupiter Medical has 207 acute-care beds and 120 long-term, sub-acute rehabilitation and hospice beds. It employs 650 doctors, 1,680 staff members and has 640 volunteers. In January, it was designated by the state of Florida as a comprehensive stroke center.
