St. Luke’s hires 3 leaders after shake-up

Baylor St. Luke’s Medical Center announced the hiring of three executives on Friday, four days after the hospital’s board of directors ousted its president and two administrators.

The leadership changes follow a yearlong investigation by the Houston Chronicle and ProPublica into patient care lapses at St. Luke’s and come in direct response to a recent incident in which an emergency room patient died after receiving the wrong blood type in a transfusion. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services opened a comprehensive investigation of hospital practices last week following the recent death, an agency spokesman said. That review is ongoing.

“We are moving rapidly to recruit and onboard the executive expertise we need to address the deficiencies cited last week … even before receiving the final report,” said Doug Lawson, who took over as hospital president this week. “Also, we are working on our 90-day plan to review current operations and to take every step necessary to keep us on the path of excellence and to earn the trust of our patients.”

Lawson replaced Gay Nord as hospital president following her removal Monday. Jennifer Nitschmann, the hospital’s chief nursing officer, and Dr. David Berger, the hospital’s senior vice president of operations, were also removed from leadership this week.

The hospital announced Friday the hiring of Dr. John Byrne, who will serve as St. Luke’s senior vice president and chief medical officer, having held a similar position at Hospital Corporation of America’s Gulf Coast division. Megan Fischer, another HCA Gulf Coast executive, will serve as vice president of quality at Baylor St. Luke’s. And Loretta Lee will serve as the hospital’s acting chief nursing officer.

St. Luke’s has faced intense scrutiny over the past year. In August, following the Chronicle and ProPublica investigation, Medicare terminated funding for heart transplants at the hospital, citing its failure to make changes needed to improve outcomes. The hospital is appealing the decision.

Friday’s news release said the hospital is now poised for “dramatic growth and improvement,” citing its long-standing plans to eventually move from its aging facility in the Texas Medical Center to a new hospital complex a few miles away.

At a 2016 groundbreaking, Baylor St. Luke’s leaders said the new hospital tower would be completed by 2019, but construction contracts were later canceled.

Friday’s announcement said the replacement facility is now “scheduled for completion in the fall of 2024.”