Trevor Fetter Steps Down as Tenet Healthcare Corp CEO, Director
Tenet’s Executive Chairman Ronald A. Rittenmeyer will step in as CEO as Trevor Fetter ends his decades-long career at the 77-hospital chain.
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By - Tenet Healthcare Corporation CEO Trevor Fetter stepped down earlier than expected as head of the health system. He also resigned as director of the company, Tenet recently announced.
The health system stated in August 2017 that Fetter would no longer lead the company as CEO by no later than March 15, 2018. But the recent announcement stated that Fetter’s exit after about 20 years in various roles at the company was effective as of Oct. 23, 2017.
Ronald A. Rittenmeyer, Tenet’s Executive Chairman, will succeed Fetter as temporary CEO while the health system seeks a permanent leader.
“I have confidence in Ron’s leadership and Tenet’s management team, so now is the right time for me to step down as CEO,” stated Fetter in the press release. “I am grateful for the hard work and dedication of all of Tenet’s employees in building this great company, and it has been an honor to work alongside them.”
Fetter’s exit comes just a couple weeks after Tenet closed four regional management offices, reported Crain’s Detroit Business. Tenet closed the offices as part of an initiative to eliminate the regional management layer of the company.
While Tenet expects the organizational restructuring to end in October, the 77-hospital chain is still exploring several strategic options, including a possible sale, as the company faces financial losses, The Wall Street Journal reported.
Tenet announced in August 2017 that the company experienced a $56 million net loss from continuing operations attributable to shareholders in 2017’s second quarter.
Consequently, the health system dropped its projected annual revenue from between $19.7 billion to $20.1 billion to between $19.1 billion to $19.4 billion.
In efforts to further reduce costs and streamline the organization, Tenet recently sold several of its hospitals in major cities.
The health system exited the Philadelphia healthcare market in September 2017 after selling its last two hospitals in the region, Hahnemann University Hospital and St. Christopher’s Hospital for Children. Paladin Healthcare, a private equity-based firm based in California, purchased the hospitals for $170 million.
Tenet is also eyeing a Chicago healthcare market exit. The company sold one of its four hospitals in the Chicago area earlier this month. Loyola Medicine bought MacNeal Hospital in a deal expected to close by the first quarter of 2018.
Potential buyers are reportedly working with Tenet on purchasing the remaining three hospitals in the Chicago area.
The company may leave several other major markets as the year closes. Fetter announced earlier this year that Tenet plans to divest in eight hospitals in domestic markets and nine facilities in the United Kingdom.
The hospital sales are expected to draw in between $900 million and $1 billion in proceeds, including cash and the elimination of capital lease debt.
