Dr. Jan Goossens steps down as chief of medical staff at MAHC

Muskoka Algonquin Health Care is looking for a new chief of medical staff to replace Dr. Jan Goossens, who it says has decided not to renew his contract. It has retained the services of Four Corners Group, an executive recruitment company out of Toronto.

Goossens took over the reins as chief of staff at MAHC when Dr. David Mathies stepped down in 2011. Mathies had served in that role for approximately 17 years. Huntsville Doppler reached Evelyn Brown, Chair of MAHC’s board at her home on Saturday morning and she explained that Goossens has chosen not to renew his contract with the organization.

He had a five-year contract with us and he has not renewed it and he has gone on to another part of his career. There’s nothing untoward about this at all. Evelyn Brown, Chair of the Board of MAHC regarding the vacancy.

Brown said Goossens will be officially done sometime in October.

Asked if MAHC would be able to find someone to replace him by then, Brown responded: “This hasn’t been a last minute thing, quite frankly. Once we knew he was going to move on to other things in his career, we have been doing a search. I mean this is a very professional way to go about things, it’s not last minute.”

Brown said the search began in late spring and it typically takes four to five months to go through the hiring process. Asked whether she knew if Goossens would remain in the community, she said “those are things that you can ask him.”

An attempt to reach Goossens was unsuccessful as he may be away on vacation, according to a source.

Brown was asked when interviews for the position would be taking place, but she declined to answer. “Those are kind of internal matters that I don’t think are appropriate for this kind of a conversation. These are HR issues. We are in the process, we are doing our due diligence, we are looking for a highly competent and qualified person for the position and that’s where it’s at, but any kind of further information at this point in time wouldn’t be appropriate,” she said.

“The Board of Directors at Muskoka Algonquin Healthcare (MAHC) is seeking an innovative physician leader who will bring strong interpersonal skills and a consensus-building leadership style in his/her interaction with both the MAHC’s current medical staff and the Board and administration. A respected clinician leader, the new Chief of Staff will have a demonstrated record of strong organizational and administrative skills and effective implementation of a strategic vision and mission. A true systems thinker, the successful candidate will bring a solid business acumen, political savvy and experience in change management to this respected leadership position,” states an ad, which appears to have been placed three days ago on Indeed, an online job search site. See the full ad here.

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