Arthur Rubenstein will conclude his tenure as dean of the medical school and executive vice president of the University Health System in June 2011. The longtime administrator, who came to Penn in 2001 from Mt. Sinai School of Medicine in New York, is widely credited with restoring the health system to sound financial footing in the wake of heavy operating losses in the late 1990s.
Although the worst was over by the time Rubenstein arrived, the wave of red ink had wiped out 20 percent of the work force—some 2,800 people—and Penn had considered selling the health system to escape the burden. Under Rubenstein’s subsequent leadership, the hospitals and physician practices became key moneymakers. The system has also expanded its footprint and capabilities, most notably with the Perelman Center for Advanced Medicine and the Roberts Proton Therapy Center [“Inside the Cancer-Cell Smasher,” March|April 2009]. Meanwhile, Rubenstein championed initiatives like the Penn Integrates Knowledge professorships [“Proof of Concept,” Sept|Oct 2008] to link medical faculty more closely with other schools and centers at Penn.
Rubenstein announced his planned departure in March, saying he intends to focus on teaching and research in endocrinology, his specialty. A search committee will begin vetting possible successors.
