Lesbian to Head SF General

An out lesbian has been selected to lead the Priscilla Chan and Mark Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital and Trauma Center.

Dr. Susan P. Ehrlich, a longtime physician whose appointment follows a nationwide search, will start her new post as chief executive officer April 25.

The county-run hospital is known for providing care to poor people who otherwise may not be able to get treatment, including many people who are living with HIV and AIDS. Ehrlich, who declined to share her age and what her salary will be, will lead a staff of 5,400 and manage a $1.1 billion budget.

In response to emailed questions, she said, "The biggest challenge for any health care provider today, large or small, public or private, is to provide the highest quality care at the lowest cost and with the best experience for patients and staff."

To achieve this goal, the hospital uses what's known as Lean, "a philosophy and set of tools" that comes "from Japanese management practice," Ehrlich said. She said she'd join staff "in continuing this improvement journey."

Ehrlich comes to the hospital from the San Mateo Medical Center, where she's been the CEO since 2009. There, she's overseen a staff of about 1,500 and a budget of $270 million. In her 14 years at the center, she's also served as chief medical officer, vice president, and medical director.

Ehrlich, who continues to work as a physician, has also been budget and planning director for the San Francisco Department of Public Health.

"We are very proud to welcome Susan to Zuckerberg San Francisco General, a critical component of the San Francisco Health Network," Health Director Barbara Garcia, also a lesbian, said in a January 28 news release announcing Ehrlich's hiring.

"Dr. Ehrlich joins us at a moment of unprecedented activity and excitement, as the entire environment of health care is changing, as the needs of our community continue to grow, and as we prepare to move into our new state-of-the-art acute care and trauma center in spring of this year," Garcia said. "We know our hospital will be in great hands."

Ehrlich said staff and patients would be moving into the new center by June.

"My first priority will be to support the staff and providers in moving our patients safely and effectively into the building," she said. Ehrlich called the move "a great opportunity for me to get to know every area of the new and existing hospital buildings from top to bottom, as well as the entire team providing patient care and support services."

In 1983, San Francisco General Hospital became the first hospital in the country to start a program for people living with HIV/AIDS when Ward 86, the outpatient clinic, opened. The hospital continues to care for thousands of people living with the disease.

Ehrlich said she's "proud to help support the work of many experts who have been pioneering care to those with HIV/AIDS for decades, and are still cited as models of providing care. ... I look forward to learning from the experts how I can best support them."

Zuckerberg San Francisco General gets its new name thanks to a $75 million donation from Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg and his wife, Dr. Pricilla Chan.