Three more leaders have left Johns Hopkins All Children's Hospital in St. Petersburg following multiple reports by the Tampa Bay Times about problems with its Heart Institute.
The institute's leader, Dr. Gerhard Ziemer, who was appointed in August, will step down, along with the vice president of medical affairs and the vice president of marketing and communications, Johns Hopkins Health System President Kevin Sowers announced on Wednesday.
“While Dr. Ziemer is not responsible for the current state of the program, we agree that a fresh start is needed to ensure success for the program,” Sowers wrote in the release. “We wish him well in his future endeavors.”
The hospital's CEO, Dr. Jonathan Ellen resigned last month, along with another vice president and the deputy director of the heart institute.
The Times' investigation found that the mortality rate in the hospital's heart institute tripled between 2015 and 2017.
Johns Hopkins also announced that a team of external experts will evaluate the heart institute to determine what is needed to reopen the facility and how long that will take.
