The Board of Directors of Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) announced today that it has accepted the resignation of President and CEO Paul Levy. The board has appointed BIDMC Chief Operating Officer Eric Buehrens as Interim President and Chief Executive Officer.

Prior to coming to BIDMC, Buehrens was the Deputy Provost for Administration at Harvard University, and served as Executive Dean for Administration at Harvard Medical School, and as Associate Dean for Planning and Facilities at HMS.

“It is with deep regret that the board has accepted Paul’s resignation,” said Stephen Kay, Chair of BIDMC’s Board of Directors. “For nearly 10 years, Paul has provided thoughtful and able leadership to this medical center, and was instrumental in restoring BIDMC’s fiscal health during a very serious financial crisis.

“Paul has significantly strengthened the medical center during his tenure, including making improvements in quality and patient safety, and has led BIDMC into a new era of accountability and excellence. The board is profoundly grateful to Paul for bringing to our hospital qualities that are uniquely his own. When the situation demanded a bold vision, Paul delivered. When austerity was the order of the day, Paul answered with compassion, so much so that our employees and patients became our ambassadors.

“We expect the transition of leadership into the capable hands of Eric Buehrens, our COO, to be extremely smooth. Eric is extremely accomplished and visionary, and we have great confidence in his ability to skillfully lead the medical center through this transition,” Kay continued.

The board will meet on Monday to convene a search committee, and will embark upon a national search to find BIDMC’s next CEO.

“Paul Levy has provided strong and highly effective leadership to this hospital at a time when clear leadership was needed,” said Mark Zeidel, MD, Chief of Medicine at BIDMC. By bringing transparency to our culture he made it possible for physicians and staff to work closely together to deliver compassionate care of outstanding quality, to provide superb education, and to perform research of the very highest quality and impact. The improvements in quality that have occurred under his watch have likely saved hundreds of lives, and have made this hospital a beacon for enhanced quality of care nationally, and around the world. The hospital is performing each of its tripartite missions of patient care, teaching and research at the highest level in its history.

“Paul Levy is a unique leader whose talents have been critical to the turnaround and growth of BIDMC,” said Stuart Rosenberg, MD, President and CEO of Harvard Medical Faculty Physicians at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center. “It is a tribute to his foresight that the management team, including both senior physicians and administrators, is one of the strongest in healthcare. During his tenure, BIDMC has become financially strong and is a national leader in improving the quality and safety of care provided to our patients. In addition our research and teaching missions are ranked at the very top of any national scale.”

“I have great admiration and appreciation for all that Paul Levy has accomplished at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, said Gene Lindsey, President and CEO of Atrius Health. “Through his passion for the importance of transparency and the very difficult work of eliminating harm, he has taught a lesson to many of us in healthcare. He deserves credit for his leadership in turning around an institution and improving the quality and affordability of the care it provides its patients.

Since taking the helm of BIDMC in 2002, Levy has led the hospital with distinction. After managing the fiscal turnaround that saw BIDMC lose more than $50 million in the year prior to Levy’s arrival, to today’s solid operating margins that include some of the best results in BIDMC’s history.

During Levy’s tenure, far more patients were served than at any time in the hospital’s history. Inpatient volume and emergency department visits each grew by more than 11 percent, while ambulatory clinic visits nearly doubled.

BIDMC’s net worth increased by nearly 300 percent, while long-term debt was reduced. This year so far, Beth Israel Deaconess has recorded an excellent performance, exceeding financial and volume projections while maintaining controls on expenses.

BIDMC continues its historic commitment to medical education and research and consistently ranks among the top four in National Institutes of Health funding among independent hospitals nationwide.

The hospital recently welcomed a new chief of surgery Elliot Chaikof, MD, and created an important new partnership with Commonwealth Hematology and Oncology, New England’s largest community based provider of cancer services. In addition, the hospital has partnered with Atrius Health, and added add new medical services not formerly available in the Anna Jaques and Lawrence General Hospital communities.

Levy has also positioned the hospital as a leader in quality, safety and transparency in the delivery of health care, establishing important relationships with like-minded hospital leaders such as Institute for Healthcare Improvement.

Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center is a patient care, teaching and research affiliate of Harvard Medical School, and consistently ranks among the top four in National Institutes of Health funding among independent hospitals nationwide. BIDMC is clinically affiliated with the Joslin Diabetes Center and is a research partner of Dana-Farber/Harvard Cancer Center. BIDMC is the official hospital of the Boston Red Sox. For more information, visit www.bidmc.org .