TRUCKEE, Calif. — After an expansive and multi-month search, Tahoe Forest Hospital District has selected a new leader who boasts years of experience in the California health care system.

In a 4-0 vote Tuesday evening, the TFHD board of directors appointed Harry Weis as chief executive officer, effective Dec. 7. Director John Mohun was absent.

“We got a lot of input from the public, from our internal stakeholders, medical staff, employees (and) management,” said board chair Karen Sessler at the meeting. “The qualities that we heard asked for repeatedly were honesty, integrity, intelligence, humility, cares about the employees, cares about the community, listens and visible.

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“We felt that Mr. Weis embodied these characteristics.”

Weis most recently worked as an interim health system executive with a six-hospital system since 2014, according to the district.

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Prior, he served as CEO of Natividad Medical Center, a Monterey County-owned hospital, from 2006 to 2014, after employment as a member of the Huron Consulting team in 2007.

According to Tahoe Forest, Weis holds a masters in health care administration from University of LaVerne, and a bachelor’s degree in business administration and accounting from Southwestern Adventist University.

“Harry has demonstrated exceptional leadership capabilities in his previous health care roles,” Sessler said in a statement. “Our priority is to serve the healthcare needs of the people in our community. … We’re pleased to have Harry join our organization and lead us into the new era of health care reform.”

THREE-YEAR CONTRACT

Weis was selected from a pool of more than 40 potential candidates who were identified through an initial outreach conducted by HFS Consultants, a firm specializing in health care hired to conduct the CEO search, according to previous reports.

Of those candidates, the board conducted first-round interviews with five, who were then narrowed to three finalists, Sessler said.

“We’re really happy with the level of candidates we received — all experienced, seasoned executives, so the selection really came down to our current needs and fit with our organization and community,” she said following the meeting.

Weis’ contract is for three years, with a base salary of $350,000, which does not include the value of various benefit and expense reimbursement options.

Further, his salary will be increased by 3 percent on Dec. 7, 2016, and Dec. 7, 2017, according to the contract.

Prior to his departure, former CEO Bob Schapper’s base pay was $404,227.20, according to previous reports.

Weis will have the opportunity to receive additional compensation up to 20 percent of his base salary, according to the employment agreement, if board-determined financial and other targets are achieved.

His salary was determined based on the California Hospital Association Annual Salary Survey, looking at organizations with similar operating expense and employee ranges to TFHD, Sessler said.

“The board deliberated long and hard to try to be as prudent as we can with the taxpayers’ money in making this contract with an individual who is quite experienced as a CEO,” she said at the meeting.

‘HONORED AND VERY EXCITED’

“I want to thank the team at Tahoe Forest Hospital and the board of directors for choosing me as the next chief executive officer for Tahoe Forest Health System,” Weis said in a statement provided by the district. “I am truly honored and very excited to join this great team. Working together as a team and engaging with our community, I’m confident that this very precious health care resource for all residents in the region can continue to innovate and to be successful long term during the most rapid and greatest change period in healthcare that is now unfolding, and will continue over many years in the future.”

Since May, Tahoe Forest Chief Information Officer Jake Dorst has served as interim CEO of the district. He will resume his prior role full time starting Dec. 7.

Dorst, whose compensation was increased to $244,482 due to assuming the interim role, will revert back to his CIO annual compensation ($190,000), Sessler confirmed.

Dorst took over the leadership role from interim CEO Ginny Razo, who left the district May 1 after accepting a CEO position with Curry Health Network in Oregon.

Razo was appointed to the role in late January 2015, replacing Schapper after the board decided to not renew his employment contract after he served 12 years as the district’s leader.