David Gibbons to Lead UPMC Hamot Starting March 1

David Gibbons named next UPMC Hamot president

UPMC Hamot announced Tuesday that President Jim Fiorenzo is retiring, and a new president will take the helm on March 1. The change comes, as the volume of patients treated at the hospital reaches an all-time high, and UPMC Hamot expands services, specialties, and its infrastructure.

For Fiorenzo, it's great to leave an organization at the top and even better when you know you're leaving it in good hands. And it's good for the entire community, when that organization is one of your biggest employers. That's the story at UPMC Hamot, which now employs nearly 3,000 people in Erie. Just a couple of years ago, Erie was anxious about Hamot merging into the UPMC system, wondering how it might impact jobs, and whether people here would have to travel to Pittsburgh for surgeries. Fiorenzo, retiring after 42 years at Hamot worked hard to see that did not happen. "There was a little apprehension in the system about loss of jobs, potentially patients being moved out of Erie, we tried to settle that down by ensuring that we were going to reinvest in not only the infrastructure here but also the capabilities here so that people didn't have to leave Erie and they could stay here," Fiorenzo said.

President since 2012, Fiorenzo spent most of his time building affiliations with regional hospitals including Kane and WCA.  He has recruited dozens of new physicians in specialty care from women's health to neurosurgery. Also he has overseen 153-million in expansion and improvements to UPMC Hamot's physical plant, adding the women's hospital, now branded with the Magee name, and building the Bayview Centre and making major improvements to the main hospital entrance and lobby.

Stepping in to lead the hospital next, David Gibbons, who is already president of UPMC Northwest in Franklin and COO of Hamot.  He has the vision to keep that expansion going.  He believes success is about the people, the medical staff and physicians and the support of the Hamot Aid Society. "It's us working together as people, to me that's most important to treat someone the way you would like to be treated," Gibbons said.  "The vision...really continuing to develop the breadth of services at Hamot," Gibbons added.  " That's one of our strategic roles and to continue our expansive role in the region as the leading tertiary hub." 

Gibbons is credited with helping Hamot develop the first kidney transplant program in the UPMC system, outside of Pittsburgh.  It received full approval to begin operation in December.  To date four patients have received transplants, and many more are on the list for the procedure.