Stephanie D. Conners will join the health system in October from Jefferson Health where she currently serves as COO.
Clearwater, Florida-based BayCare Health System recently named the organization's next CEO, following Tommy Inzina's planned retirement.
Stephanie D. Conners will succeed Inzina as president and CEO in 2023, shortly before it opens its 16th hospital in Wesley Chapel, the health system said in a press release. She will serve as the fourth CEO and be the first woman leader for the 25-year-old nonprofit health system.
"For the board, it was paramount that we find a leader who is committed to BayCare's legacy of mission-driven, community-focused health care," Rick Colón, chairman of the board, said in a statement. "In Stephanie Conners, we see an engaging and compassionate leader who will lead BayCare into its next era of serving the community's health, our team members, and our medical community."
Conners, who currently serves as COO of Jefferson Health, a nonprofit health system headquartered in Philadelphia, will officially join BayCare in October to begin the leadership transition.
In her new role, she will oversee the nearly $5 billion annual revenue, 15-hospital system, which has more than 27,000 team members, and serves communities in Hillsborough, Pinellas, Polk, and Pasco counties.
"I am humbled and honored to lead such a remarkable organization," Conners said in a statement. "Its legacy of compassionate care is palpable, and I look forward to helping ensure its future success. It is my personal mission to make a difference in the lives of others."
Conners began her almost 30-year healthcare career as a bedside nurse. Following, she became a trauma nurse, then worked in management, and eventually moved to serve in hospital operational leadership roles.
She has served in senior executive roles since 2002, when she joined Tenet Healthcare to serve as CNO for Hahnemann University Hospital in Philadelphia. From there, she went on to serve as SVP for operations and system CNO for Robert Wood Johnson University and Bristol-Myers Squibb Children's hospitals in New Jersey. Then, she served as COO and CNO for Cooper University Health Care in New Jersey.
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Melanie Blackman is a contributing editor for strategy, marketing, and human resources at HealthLeaders, an HCPro brand.