PeaceHealth has announced the departures of two more members of the Vancouver-based health care system’s leadership team — just a week after the top two officials at its Vancouver hospital said they were leaving.
PeaceHealth’s chief financial officer, Kevin Walstrom, is leaving the system as of May 7, and John Hill, PeaceHealth senior vice president and chief executive officer for PeaceHealth’s Oregon West Network, is leaving May 5.
Walstrom has served as PeaceHealth’s chief financial officer since 2010 and in various other positions from 1987 to 2001. Peggy Allen, a certified public accountant who has been working as a consultant to PeaceHealth, has been named the interim chief financial officer.
“I am leaving on a happy note,” Walstrom said in an email announcement of his departure. “It’s been a great experience to work my way up at PeaceHealth where I began as an intern, and now it’s time for a change. I’m going to be able to live full-time in our house on Orcas Island where my wife is a special education teacher, and I’ll take some time to find my next passion. I am and will always be a big supporter of PeaceHealth.”
Hill has led the PeaceHealth Oregon West Network since 2012. A transition plan for Hill’s departure will be developed in the next several weeks, said Beth O’Brien, PeaceHealth’s chief operating officer, in the email announcement.
“The network is well positioned to succeed moving forward and I feel it’s time to evaluate the next move on my personal career path,” Hill said in the email announcement. “I will always cherish my experience at PeaceHealth.”
Last week, PeaceHealth announced the departures of Sy Johnson, chief executive officer and chief mission officer of the PeaceHealth Columbia Network — which includes PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center and PeaceHealth St. John Medical Center in Longview — and Joanne Olsen, PeaceHealth Southwest chief administrative officer and chief nursing officer for the Columbia Network.
Johnson’s last day is April 24. Olsen’s last day is Friday.
In December, PeaceHealth’s president and chief mission officer, Alan Yordy, announced he was retiring June 30. A successor has not yet been named.
The turnover at PeaceHealth isn’t uncommon in organizations, O’Brien explained by email. When new leadership comes into an organization other executives may choose that time to move on as well, she said.
New roles are replacing some functions at the senior leadership level, she said.
“PeaceHealth is purposefully moving to streamline operations around a strong, integrated system core,” O’Brien wrote. “That means we need a different kind of leadership structure that reflects the rapidly evolving health care environment.”
