The Oregon Health & Science University board of directors on Friday at its regular board meeting tabled a motion to appoint a new OHSU president, following the announcement that OHSU President Danny Jacobs, M.D., M.P.H., FACS, is stepping down after six years leading the institution.
The board is now moving expeditiously to launch a search for a new president; a search firm and committee will be named soon.
Board Chair Chad Paulson, J.D., noted that the board is extremely grateful to Nate Selden, M.D., Ph.D., a highly qualified, world-renowned pediatric neurosurgeon, for his incredible leadership and willingness to step up. Paulson added that the board hopes Selden will continue to pursue becoming OHSU’s next president.
Finances improve
Also on Friday, the university’s board of directors heard that OHSU continued to narrow an expected operating loss in the first quarter of the year.
The university reported a loss of $9 million over the three months since the board approved a $5.5 billion annual operating budget for fiscal year 2025, which began on July 1. That’s a $30 million improvement over the expectation for the first quarter of the fiscal year.
The improvement shows progress toward strategic alignment goals set in the FY25 budget: caring for each patient promptly in the right place and at the right cost structure; meeting demand for complex care that is OHSU’s unique role in Oregon; reallocating full-time equivalent positions toward front-line care; and rigorous control of costs.
In related news, the board accepted an independent auditor’s annual report of fiscal year 2024 financial statements. The firm, KMPG, indicated it is prepared to issue an unmodified “clean” opinion.
In other business, the board:
- Heard a report about the OHSU Oregon Institute of Occupational Health Sciences delivered by Steven Shea, Ph.D., director, and Leslie Hammer, Ph.D., associate director of applied research.
- Received an annual update from Tim Marshall, chief integrity officer, and approved an updated employee code of conduct revised following feedback from the board during its previous meeting in September.