After the late night time announcement on Monday, Nov. 21, that the MetroHealth board of trustees had fired Dr. Akram Boutros, the hospital system’s president and CEO, Boutros has responded that he believes the choice is vindicative and that he plans to “take authorized motion.”‘
In a press release issued by his legal professional, Jason R. Bristol, Boutros stated the assertion by the hospital’s board was “stuffed with misinformation and outright lies.”
“The MetroHealth Board’s actions yesterday are the newest of a collection of retaliatory acts in opposition to Dr. Boutros after he raised the difficulty of the unauthorized hiring of the brand new CEO,” the assertion, issued Tuesday, Nov. 22, learn.
The assertion went on to say that Boutros “uncovered that the board members had been taking part in serial deliberation exterior of public conferences and that the chair signed agreements and approved funds with out board approval. The chair led a retaliatory cost in opposition to him for blowing the whistle on these practices. She focused him for receiving bonuses that had been additionally acquired by all eligible staff.”
Boutros was terminated, based on a press release from MetroHealth board chair Vanessa Whiting, as a result of further compensation of greater than $1.9 million that Boutros authorized for himself between 2018 and 2022. The extra compensation was dropped at the board’s consideration by exterior counsel in the course of the preparation for Boutros’ departure as CEO.
Boutros supposed to retire on the finish of the yr. He will likely be succeeded by Airica Steed, at the moment an government within the Sinai Chicago Well being System.
Within the Monday night assertion, the MetroHealth board stated Boutros “established particular metrics, carried out self-assessments of his efficiency underneath these metrics, and approved cost to himself of greater than $1,900,000 in supplemental bonuses primarily based on these self-evaluations between.”
“We all know of no group allowing its CEO to self-evaluate and decide their entitlement to an extra bonus and at what quantity, as Dr. Boutros has performed,” the assertion learn.
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Boutros repaid the hospital system greater than $2.1 million on Oct. 31, which included curiosity on the bonus cash. He reported the violation to the Ohio Ethics Fee on Nov. 1.
The “demand” for reimbursement, based on the assertion from Boutros’ legal professional, “is proof of the board’s discriminatory therapy as he’s the one worker pressured to repay bonuses. The board of trustees took this motion to divert consideration from their very own gross negligence.”
The MetroHealth price range is scheduled to have a listening to in entrance of the Cuyahoga County Council on Tuesday, based on the council agenda.
A spokesperson from County Govt Armond Budish stated that within the wake of Boutros’ assertion threatening authorized motion, Budish had no touch upon the matter.
Dr. Nabil Chehade will function interim MetroHealth CEO till Steed assumes the job on Dec. 5.
This story first appeared in our sister publication, Crain’s Cleveland Enterprise.