UVA Health interim leader is named permanent CEO

After serving as UVA Health’s interim leader for seven months, Dr. Mitchell Rosner has been named CEO of the health system as well as executive vice president for health affairs for the University of Virginia, the university announced Sept. 12.

A nephrologist and medicine professor at U.Va.’s medical school, Rosner has acted as interim leader of UVA Health since February, when Dr. Craig Kent resigned. Kent left the post after an independent investigation undertaken following a September 2024 letter of “no confidence” signed by 128 physicians, which alleged Kent and Dr. Melina Kibbe, dean of the U.Va. School of Medicine, created a “culture of fear and retaliation” that “compromised patient safety.”

“It’s an incredible honor,” Rosner said in a statement. “I’ve devoted my career to UVA and UVA Health, so this is the opportunity of a lifetime to be able to serve my colleagues, my friends and the community that I have lived in so long.”

Appointed to a three-year term, Rosner was named to the position near the end of Friday’s University of Virginia Board of Visitors meeting. UVA Health includes four hospitals across Charlottesville, Culpeper and Northern Virginia, along with the UVA School of Medicine, UVA School of Nursing, UVA Physicians Group and the Claude Moore Health Sciences Library.

Previously, more than two dozen chairs and leaders at UVA Health, including Dr. Taison Bell, interim chair of the university’s department of medicine, sent a letter to the university’s rector and interim president advocating for Rosner to be hired for the permanent leadership role.

“During his brief tenure as interim EVP for health affairs, Dr. Rosner has gained and fostered the trust and respect of our faculty and lent much needed stability to a tumultuous period for UVA Health,” the letter stated.

U.Va.’s interim president, Paul Mahoney, suggested waiving a national search for the position, and the university’s rector, Rachel Sheridan, with the support of the full board, agreed.

A faculty member at the university’s School of Medicine for 21 years, Rosner served as chair of the department of medicine before being selected for the interim role. After earning a degree from Harvard University, Rosner earned his medical degree from the Medical College of Georgia. He completed his residency and fellowship in nephrology at UVA Health University Medical Center. He has published seven books and more than 200 journal articles.

Bell called Rosner “the kind of leader you read about in leadership books.”

Rosner’s “communication style is approachable, open and honest,” Bell added in a statement.  “He listens carefully while bringing people together to make thoughtful, inclusive decisions. He deeply considers how his decisions will impact others, and he consistently seeks ways to empower others around him to lead. Beyond his vision and integrity, it is this genuine commitment to people that sets him apart.”

Earlier this week, UVA Health announced it has appointed longtime health care executive Teresa L. Edwards to serve as interim CEO of its University Medical Center.

UVA Health has had a tumultuous year. University Medical Center CEO Wendy Horton announced in July plans to leave in September. Kibbe formally announced her resignation in August.