Leslie Hirsch, CEO and president of Saint Peter’s Healthcare System, has been elected to the American Hospital Association‘s board of trustees for a three-year term beginning Jan. 1, 2025. The board is the highest policymaking body of the AHA and has ultimate authority for the governance and management of its directions and finances.
A seasoned health care executive, Hirsch’s career spans over 40 years. He has served as CEO and president of Saint Peter’s Healthcare System since 2017, having initially joined the organization as president in 2015.
Prior to joining Saint Peter’s, Hirsch served as CEO and president for seven years at Saint Clare’s Health System in Denville. He previously served as CEO and president of Touro Infirmary in New Orleans, starting in August 2005, just one week before New Orleans took a direct hit from Hurricane Katrina. Before joining Touro, Hirsch served as CEO and president of Exempla-Saint Joseph Hospital in Denver, as well as CEO and president of the Cooper Health System (now known as Cooper University Health Care) in Camden.
Hirsch has been active with the AHA for many years, having served several terms as a member of its regional policy board for New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania, and will also become chair of the RPB when he begins his three-year term on the AHA board.
“I am honored to have been elected to the AHA board of trustees and look forward to serving as chair of Regional Policy Board 2,” Hirsch said. “AHA’s advocacy in support of the essential work of the hospital field nationally and its mission to ‘Advance Health in America’ benefits the lives and well-being of those we serve in every community across the nation. I am grateful for this opportunity and look forward to actively participating in the important work ahead.”
