Penn Health System Chief Executive Officer Robert Martin's resignation has made him the third person in that position to resign in as many years, and while experts say the move is not surprising, it could reflect the turbulent environment in the system.
Experts have speculated on Martin's decision to leave, and many said they did not expect Martin to stay in office for a prolonged period of time, due in part to the history of Penn's Health System.
In 1997, the system began to lose money at an alarming rate, and in three years it had lost $300 million -- at the time, more than the budgets of any of the University's academic schools.
University President Judith Rodin dismissed then-CEO William Kelley. His replacement, Peter Traber, spent about half a year in the office before he decided to resign.
Robert Martin was appointed in July 2000, and helped to bring the beleaguered Health System back to financial stability and has been instrumental in the creation of Penn Medicine, a not-for-profit entity wholly owned by the University designed to run the system.
Last Tuesday, Martin told his colleagues in a memo that he will leave the office in June, declaring that he accomplished his goals and is looking to "seek a new challenge."
Harvard University Management Professor Nancy Kane emphasized that the turnover the office has seen is not desirable for a health system that is reeling from deficit.
"That turnover is bad for a system that had the financial problems of Penn," she wrote in an e-mail.
Though many Penn officials would not comment on the rapid turnover in the office, outside experts believe that the trend will continue.
"In general, it is a high turnover job, and the turnover has gotten more rapid in recent years," Wharton Professor Mark Pauly said.
Pauly said that inherently there is high turnover because the job is stressful and "bad things can happen to good hospitals."
Kane realted the turnover to the poor state of health systems more generally.
"They each have dug their own unique holes that they have to climb out of," she wrote.
Alan Zuckerman, director of management consulting firm Health Strategies and Solutions, said that he was not surprised Martin resigned after so little time.
"There are some people who are good at turnarounds and like to be in office then," he said. "Others are good at the time after the turnaround."
"And that is not usually the same person," Zuckerman added.
Daniel Grauman, CEO of management consulting firm DGA Partners, agreed with Zuckerman, though admitted that he was surprised when he first heard the announcement.
"I was a little surprised... but I read what everyone else read and that provided insight," Grauman said. "You can infer that he really viewed his job as turning around the organization and setting it on a course that would lead it to stability."
And Grauman said that Martin did accomplish his goals and at least partially restored the Health System.
"I've heard that Penn is getting on much more sound financial footing," Grauman said.
"He has stopped the financial bleeding and has the place operating on an even keel now," Pauly added.
Grauman said that other academic health systems have also seen rapid turnover, since many have recently faced financial difficulties.
"If you consider the fact that health systems have been trying to rebound from difficulties... [rapid turnaround] is common," Grauman said. "Almost each academic health system has gone through a management change in one way or another."
Grauman mentioned, though, that management changes that have occurred in other academic health systems don't seem as drastic as what Penn officials experience as they look for the system's fourth CEO since 1999.
