Arnot Health leader sets retirement for end of 2013

ELMIRA — Arnot Health President and CEO Anthony Cooper will retire on Dec. 31 of next year and be replaced by the health-care system’s medical services president.

Cooper started as president and CEO of the single-campus Arnot Ogden Memorial Hospital in 1986. At the time, it had 256 beds and a $42 million budget. He’s overseen its growth into a health-care system with 809 beds, 37 practice sites, and a budget totaling more than $375 million.

“I’m leaving an organization I love, so it’s bittersweet,” Cooper said in a news release. “I’m extremely proud of what the people of Arnot Health have accomplished during my time here, and I consider myself very fortunate to have worked alongside such dedicated and gifted colleagues and practitioners.”

Dr. Robert Lambert will succeed Cooper. His qualifications include leading in the development of Arnot Medical Services and his experience in clinical and administrative medicine, according to the health-care system.

“Arnot Health is at an extraordinary crossroads,” Lambert said in a news release. “Health care in this country is changing in a rapid and unprecedented fashion, bringing us special challenges, but also unique opportunities. I am excited and honored to lead Arnot Health into this era. We are proud of the high-quality care we have always provided to our patients, and we are proud of our expanding Arnot Health community.”

Arnot Ogden Memorial Hospital affiliated with Ira Davenport Memorial Hospital in Bath in 2009. St. Joseph’s Hospital of Elmira joined the system two years later. The not-for-profit organization now serves the Southern Tier of New York and Pennsylvania’s Northern Tier. It has 2,900 staff members and more than 300 physicians.

Contact Seltzer at rseltzer@cnybj.com