Margaret "Maggie" Gill knows Memorial University Medical Center and its people.
That, along with a youthful confidence in her skills, might make her the perfect fit for the county's largest health-care provider and its evolving governance as it seeks to overcome persistent debt while maintaining quality services.
"I love Memorial," said the new interim CEO for Memorial Health, parent corporation for the medical center. "I think that comes through. I just want to see us succeed."
Named interim CEO after the Jan. 5 ouster of Phillip Schaengold, Gill, 39, will remain in the post for the foreseeable future, board chair Bill Daniel said.
She will retain some responsibilities of the chief operating officer, splitting some with other officials.
"We believe Maggie has the skills to focus on some critical business management areas we need to address that will improve the efficient operation of the institution," Daniel said.
The permanent CEO position remains under discussion by the board.
"We recognize the complexity and challenges of the position," Daniel said.
Gill said she was not surprised at Schaengold's removal, citing physician relations, internal communications and financial position issues.
Those were all "indicators that things weren't doing well. ... (and) obvious philosophical disagreements between Phil and the board."
'Need for stability'
"The board understands the need for stability now," she said.
A key issue was friction between Schaengold and the hospital's physicians over contract negotiations.
Gill expresses confidence she can bridge that gap.
In fact, she expects the contracts already approved can be completed within the month.
"I don't think our physicians want anything that is not fair and reasonable," she said. "The No. 1 thing a CEO has to do is listen."
Finances still key
She concedes the bottom-line red ink is a key.
The health-care provider has battled debt since 2006, and Gill thinks she knows why.
Last year, Memorial Health had a gross operating loss of about $27 million, she said.
That translated to a net loss of about $15 million after factoring in investments, she said.
Hospital officials have been hammering the cost issues while trying to bring the deficit in line, Gill said.
"What I think we haven't done is look at the top line - revenue," she said.
She mentioned such issues as billing, collections and payer contracts as areas needing addressing.
The board uncovered problems in billing and collections while working on new contract with employed physicians. That area was one of the tipping points for Schaengold's dismissal.
'County hospital'
Memorial's public perception as the "county hospital" means a large number of the folks using the facility are low-income or un- and under-insured who have difficulty in paying their bills.
That contributes to the uncompensated and charity care costs that drag down the bottom line.
Gill suggests the hospital may have to alter the way it does business with certain services, but stops short of identifying specific fixes until she and her board can talk.
"We need to manage where we are," she said.
Gill came to Memorial in 2004 as vice president for finance and managed care.
"I was impressed with its reputation - I liked the people that I met. I liked the culture."
She brought with her experience from age 28 as a chief financial officer in Florida hospitals.
She almost immediately found herself in a management meltdown when she was briefly named interim chief financial officer in November 2006 when the person holding that post left amid an accounting issue.
This time, Gill was chief operating officer when the Memorial Health board fired Schaengold in a dispute over, among other things, finances.
Mission remains
Memorial remains committed to her mission but the final result "is not going to be exactly as it is today,"Gill said.
"Our business model is not about to turn the corner so we have to make some changes," she said.
"I'm not going to give a date when (red ink is) going to go away," she added.
But that change will be in "how it does business but not the community service."
Like her predecessors, Gill is proud of the product.
"If you want the best care in this community, this is the hospital to come to and the numbers don't lie on that."
The Maggie Gill fileThat, along with a youthful confidence in her skills, might make her the perfect fit for the county's largest health-care provider and its evolving governance as it seeks to overcome persistent debt while maintaining quality services.
"I love Memorial," said the new interim CEO for Memorial Health, parent corporation for the medical center. "I think that comes through. I just want to see us succeed."
Named interim CEO after the Jan. 5 ouster of Phillip Schaengold, Gill, 39, will remain in the post for the foreseeable future, board chair Bill Daniel said.
She will retain some responsibilities of the chief operating officer, splitting some with other officials.
"We believe Maggie has the skills to focus on some critical business management areas we need to address that will improve the efficient operation of the institution," Daniel said.
The permanent CEO position remains under discussion by the board.
"We recognize the complexity and challenges of the position," Daniel said.
Gill said she was not surprised at Schaengold's removal, citing physician relations, internal communications and financial position issues.
Those were all "indicators that things weren't doing well. ... (and) obvious philosophical disagreements between Phil and the board."
'Need for stability'
"The board understands the need for stability now," she said.
A key issue was friction between Schaengold and the hospital's physicians over contract negotiations.
Gill expresses confidence she can bridge that gap.
In fact, she expects the contracts already approved can be completed within the month.
"I don't think our physicians want anything that is not fair and reasonable," she said. "The No. 1 thing a CEO has to do is listen."
Finances still key
She concedes the bottom-line red ink is a key.
The health-care provider has battled debt since 2006, and Gill thinks she knows why.
Last year, Memorial Health had a gross operating loss of about $27 million, she said.
That translated to a net loss of about $15 million after factoring in investments, she said.
Hospital officials have been hammering the cost issues while trying to bring the deficit in line, Gill said.
"What I think we haven't done is look at the top line - revenue," she said.
She mentioned such issues as billing, collections and payer contracts as areas needing addressing.
The board uncovered problems in billing and collections while working on new contract with employed physicians. That area was one of the tipping points for Schaengold's dismissal.
'County hospital'
Memorial's public perception as the "county hospital" means a large number of the folks using the facility are low-income or un- and under-insured who have difficulty in paying their bills.
That contributes to the uncompensated and charity care costs that drag down the bottom line.
Gill suggests the hospital may have to alter the way it does business with certain services, but stops short of identifying specific fixes until she and her board can talk.
"We need to manage where we are," she said.
Gill came to Memorial in 2004 as vice president for finance and managed care.
"I was impressed with its reputation - I liked the people that I met. I liked the culture."
She brought with her experience from age 28 as a chief financial officer in Florida hospitals.
She almost immediately found herself in a management meltdown when she was briefly named interim chief financial officer in November 2006 when the person holding that post left amid an accounting issue.
This time, Gill was chief operating officer when the Memorial Health board fired Schaengold in a dispute over, among other things, finances.
Mission remains
Memorial remains committed to her mission but the final result "is not going to be exactly as it is today,"Gill said.
"Our business model is not about to turn the corner so we have to make some changes," she said.
"I'm not going to give a date when (red ink is) going to go away," she added.
But that change will be in "how it does business but not the community service."
Like her predecessors, Gill is proud of the product.
"If you want the best care in this community, this is the hospital to come to and the numbers don't lie on that."
Name: Margaret "Maggie" Gill
Position: Interim CEO, Memorial Health/Memorial University Medical Center
Age: 39
Hometown: Tallahassee, Fla., raised in Monticello, Fla.
Education: Bachelor of Arts in English/humanities, Florida State University, 1992; MBA St. Leo University; executive education, strategic thinking, Wharton School of Business, University of Pennsylvania, 2005
Professional: Controller, North Bay Hospital, New Port Richey, Florida, 1993-1998; Tenet South Florida HealthSystem, chief financial officer, Palmetto General Hospital, Hialeah, Florida, July 2002- August 2004; chief financial officer, North Shore Medical Center, Miami, Florida, February 2001-July 2002; chief financial officer, Coral Gables Hospital, September 1998-January 2001; Memorial Health: vice president finance and managed care, Memorial University Medical Center, 2004- 2005; chief operating officer, 2005-Jan. 5, 2011.
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