Josh Tinkle, who has served as COO of the system since 2019, was named acting CEO by the board of directors.
Northern Arizona Healthcare (NAH) will be launching a search for a new, permanent CEO, the nonprofit health system recently announced.
Florence Spyrow, RN, MSN, MPH, MHA, JD, who has led the Flagstaff, Arizona-based system since October 2018, has stepped down from her role as president and CEO. No reason was given for this decision.
"We are grateful for the many years of service to the system and wish Flo all the best in the coming years," Bill Riley, Chairman of the NAH board of directors, said in a statement.
Josh Tinkle, who has served as COO of the system since 2019, was immediately named acting CEO by the board of directors, a role he served from late 2021 into early 2022 during Spyrow's family leave.
"We are privileged to serve northern Arizona communities and remain grateful to our patients who have entrusted us with their care. We are confident that Josh will help NAH move forward successfully during this transition," Riley said.
NAH and the board of directors will begin a national search for a permanent president and CEO. Their hope is to "find the right candidate in the next six to nine months," Riley said.
"We will be forming a hiring task force comprising NAH board members to reach out to the communities we serve, including our health care providers and key stakeholders, to solicit their input on qualifications for our next CEO," he added.
Spyrow joined NAH in 2015 to serve as chief administrative officer of Flagstaff Medical Center. In 2018 she would serve as interim president and CEO of the health system for six months, before taking the permanent role in October 2018.
"I am proud of NAH's many accomplishments during my tenure," Spyrow said in a statement.
In a previous interview with HealthLeaders, the once neonatal ICU nurse said that when she began her career in healthcare, she had no plans to go into leadership. But once she took on a nurse manager position, she fell in love with leadership.
During her healthcare career, she served in numerous leadership positions including a CNO, a VP of operations, and even an interim CMO. Earlier in her career, she became an attorney and worked as in-house counsel for a health system, before fully committing to serving in healthcare administration work.
Melanie Blackman is a contributing editor for strategy, marketing, and human resources at HealthLeaders, an HCPro brand.
Photo credit: Flagstaff, Arizona/USA - June 1 2019: the entrance to the Flagstaff Medical Center which is the main healthcare facility in Coconino County. / Mystic Stock Photography / Shutterstock.com