The top candidate to head Caritas Christi Health Care System has taken a job with a Pennsylvania healthcare system, delivering a setback to turnaround efforts at the Archdiocese of Boston's hospital chain.
Dr. Christopher T. Olivia, chief executive of Cooper University Hospital in Camden, N.J., will become chief executive of West Penn Allegheny Health System of Pittsburgh.
In an interview, Olivia, 45, said the decision to take the Pittsburgh job was a difficult one.
"I was down to the point where my wife said, 'We'll flip a coin,' " said Olivia. "I really struggled with it, and I felt terrible about it."
Even though he turned down the Caritas Christi job, Olivia said he was impressed with the six-hospital chain. "Caritas, under the right leadership, will have a very bright future," he said. "Anybody would be privileged to work with these people."
Caritas Christi has faced challenges since former chief executive Dr. Robert M. Haddad was forced to resign in May 2006 amid allegations he sexually harassed several female employees. The chain initially looked for a new chief executive, but the archdiocese eventually suspended the search and asked a consultant to explore options for the hospital chain. As a result, the archdiocese said last year it had decided to sell the hospitals to another Catholic healthcare provider.
But a preliminary agreement for the chain to be purchased by Ascension Health of St. Louis fell apart last summer, and talks with Catholic Health Initiatives of Denver failed last fall. The archdiocese then decided to restart its search for a CEO and attempt to man age its way out of financial difficulties.
In a statement, James J. Karam, chairman of Caritas Christi's board of governors, said the chain would select a chief executive "in the coming weeks."
"We have been very pleased with the quality of candidates who have expressed interest in, and are qualified to lead, the system," said Karam. "The [search] committee is currently in discussions with several strong candidates. Dr. Olivia was one of those candidates."
The fact that the position was offered to Olivia, an outsider, may not bode well for Dr. John Chessare, acting chief executive of Caritas Christi, who has applied for the permanent job.
The search for a new leader is being conducted by Russell Reynolds Associates, a well-known executive search firm.
Olivia will head one of Pennsylvania's largest healthcare systems, which includes major hospitals in Pittsburgh and Bloomfield.
"I really picked Pittsburgh because they have greater challenges than Caritas Christi," he said.
Jeffrey Krasner can be reached at krasner@globe.com.
