Did the Board of Trustees rush to approve hiring a new CEO to lead the 126-year-old Chinese Hospital ?

SAN FRANCISCO — When Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Jian Zhang announced her retirement from the 126-year-old Chinese Hospital in a special board meeting in May, a CEO candidate was subsequently recommended and approved by the Board in the same meeting. Leaders and members of the Chinese community have questioned why the Board has not tried to search for the best candidates from outside to lead a crucial institution which has been in financial crisis for years.

Established in 1899, the Chinese Hospital, located at 845 Jackson Street in San Francisco Chinatown, has been very unique and valuable to the Chinese community of its profound history as the oldest Chinese community-owned hospital in the United States providing emergency room and urgent care services in addition to regular inpatient and outpatient services in languages and cultural competency.

The Chinese Hospital has been up and down for a century facing various challenges in different difficult times. In recent years, the Chinese Hospital has been in financial difficulty stemming from the departure of independent physicians, who are also members of the Chinese Community Health Care Association (CCHCA), from the Chinese Hospital system including its health plan, Chinese Community Health Plan (CCHP).

The independent physicians, who are mostly Chinese American community doctors and created the CCHP health plan in 1986, filed a lawsuit at the San Francisco Superior Court accusing CCHP of breach of contract and unfair competition for implementing a new system to pressure them into signing individual physician contracts to replace a group contract with CCHCA. The lawsuits between the physicians and CCHP, which is under the Chinese Hospital system, were settled years later.

Prior to the lawsuit filed in 2015, the Chinese Hospital, CCHP health plan and independent physicians were in partnerships as the only one of its kind to create a 3-way “iron triangle” comprehensive health care system to serve the community for 30 years. All three parties collaborated with each other very well and their membership and revenues were growing.

The independent physicians founded the All American Medical Group (AAMG) as a result of the lawsuit. The medical group with over 250 mostly Chinese American doctors in the network has been operating for almost 10 years.

The departure of physicians from the system has also hurt the Chinese Hospital and CCHP for a decade. The legal battles began in 2015 when Brenda Yee was both the CEO of Chinese Hospital and CCHP. Yee retired in 2017 in the midst of controversy and disputes between physicians and the Chinese Hospital system. She was a registered nurse in training and worked at the Chinese Hospital for a total of 26 years since 1999 and served as CEO from 2009 to 2017.

Zhang was also trained as a registered nurse. She received her doctorate degree in Nursing Practicing from the University of San Francisco and post-master degree in Family Nurse Practitioner from the University of California San Francisco (UCSF). She started working at the Chinese Hospital in 2012 as the Chief Outpatient Services and Innovation Officer. Zhang was promoted to Chief Operating Officer (COO) in 2015 and named as CEO in September 2017 to succeed Yee.

The Chinese community is well aware of the financial challenges that the Chinese Hospital has faced since 2015. “The Chinese Hospital is like walking a tightrope,” said Kitman Chan, who is a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) and served as Chinese Hospital’s Board Chair in 2021 and 2022, when he was asked by journalists about the financial situation of the hospital in 2022.

Although the “iron triangle”, Chinese Hospital, CCHP Health Plan, and Chinese Community Health Care Association (CCHCA), held a historic reunion in August 2022 after 7-year legal battles. Three years later as of June 2025, AAMG which is one of the largest Chinese American medical groups in the San Francisco Bay Area still has not reached a plan working with Chinese Hospital and CCHP as partners.

The relationship between the management team of Chinese Hospital and independent medical groups has played a role in the financial situation of Chinese Hospital. Records which are open to public inspection show that the non-profit Chinese Hospital has been continuously in deficit with expenses exceeding revenues by millions of dollars for years.

The 16-member Board of Trustees of the Chinese Hospital holds regular meetings once every month. On May 28, a special meeting was held after the regular monthly meeting. Zhang announced her retirement to be in effect at the end of 2025, according to the information provided by community members who have had connections with the Chinese Hospital.

The majority of the board members were not informed of the CEO retirement and hiring matter in advance. Some board members left earlier after the regular meeting without knowing the reason for holding the special meeting. Some members were absent for both regular and special meetings.

On June 4, Zhang announced her retirement to the community through sending out press releases in English and Chinese languages. Thomas Ng, the longest serving board member for over 40 years and has served 8 terms as Board Chair, was one of board members to learn of the retirement of Zhang in the Chinese-language newspapers.

“Dr. Zhang will continue to serve as a Board Advisor and Executive Coach to support leadership transition and mentor the next generation of leaders,” the Chinese Hospital stated in the press release. “As part of the succession plan, Chief Financial Officer and President Michael Chung will assume the role of CEO beginning in 2026.”

Senior board member Thomas Ng, who represents the Chinese Consolidated Benevolent Association (CCBA) on the Chinese Hospital board, was so shocked to read the articles in the Chinese press without knowing all these details about the latest top position personnel matter in the Chinese Hospital.

Ng did not attend both meetings on May 28. He was not notified of the reasons for holding a special meeting that evening. “The next CEO should be selected and hired by the board, not by the management team themselves," said Ng. “Did the board approve everything that was put in the news articles?”

“Hiring a new CEO to lead the hospital is a very important and serious matter and needs to be discussed thoroughly among board members and with the community, including hundreds of members of family associations in Chinatown under CCBA,” said Ng with frustration.

“Should they rush to hire the next CEO without letting all board members know?” said Ng. “The Chinese Hospital has been owned by the Chinese community in San Francisco for over a century. It doesn’t belong to any single person or a small group of people.”

“Hiring a new CEO should be discussed and voted on by all members of the hospital’s Board of Trustees,” Ng said.

According to the latest information received, at least 5 board members were absent from the special meeting in May on the matter of hiring incoming CEO Chung. In addition to Thomas Ng, they were Ding Lee who represents Ning Yung Benevolent Association, the largest family association at CCBA, Yick Choy Tam of Sue Hing Benevolent Association, Sherman Tang of Chinese American Citizens Alliance, the oldest Chinese American civil rights organization in the nation, and Donald Luu of Chinese Chamber of Commerce.

Tang had served as a board member almost 20 years ago and now returns to the Chinese Hospital board in 2025. Tang was traveling out of the country in May and back to San Francisco lately.

He was not notified of Zhang’s retirement and did not follow the latest news in the Chinese press about the incoming CEO for the Chinese Hospital.

“If the board had voted and approved the appointment of new CEO, I don’t know how it can be changed. I will continue to support the hospital as much as I can because the Chinese Hospital is very valuable to the Chinese community,” said Tang.

Larry Yee serves as an appointed San Francisco Police Commissioner and also a new board member of the Chinese Hospital starting January 2025. Yee was present at the special meeting and declined to tell the number of board members attending.

“We did discuss the matter before we voted,” Yee said, “It was an unanimous vote to approve CFO Michael Chung as the next CEO.”

“In all companies, the CFO is always the best person next to the CEO knowing the companies,” said Yee. “This time no other person has been better than CFO Michael Chung knowing of the Chinese Hospital and we hospitals are under attack and have difficult times for challenges. No need to increase the risk.”

Yee admitted that the Chinese Hospital is still in a financial crisis. “I know no other person at this moment,” said Yee. “I trust him to lead the hospital into the next challenges.”

“The current healthcare environment is particularly challenging for hospitals. In order for the Chinese Hospital to survive, and even thrive, we must have a CEO of unusual intelligence who understands physicians, but most importantly, has a clear vision for the future of this hospital and our community,” said Dr. Woo, President of the AAMG.

Leaders and members of the Chinese community have provided inputs and opinions on hiring the next CEO for the Chinese Hospital. They are directly or indirectly connected to the Chinese Hospital and do not want their names to be published, preventing future possible conflict of interests.

They all said they valued and cared so much about the future of Chinese Hospital. It is necessary for the Chinese Hospital to explore ways from outside and bring in new resources to save the hospital. During the past decade, the Chinese Hospital has been going downhill under the CEOs who have been from the same inside circles by working in the Chinese Hospital and being promoted to the top positions.

Leaders and community members have hoped for the Chinese Hospital growing and thriving with new programs and revenues under the incoming fresh leadership instead of the same team struggling for survival.

The way that the current board rushed a vote to approve the hiring of incoming CEO in a special meeting would rule out the opportunity for any candidates who are willing to serve to submit their applications for the job, they said.

In a regular practice of all board meetings, the very important item or proposal would not be voted immediately in the same meeting once it was introduced. It would be scheduled at least for the next meeting for further discussions and inform all board members to participate, they said.

In a democratic society, the top and executive positions are opened for the public to apply for the purpose of searching for the best candidates. The hospital has 6 months to search for the next CEO before Zhang retires at the end of the year. They suggested naming an acting CEO if the search has not been done by then.

As the current management team has not been able to bring back the AAMG doctors to join the system for the past 8 years, the board should also consider fresh leadership from outside for new opportunities, especially talented healthcare professionals with management experience, to establish partnerships with AAMG and more organizations.

When asked why she decided to retire at this moment, Zhang said her decision was not made lightly.

“It was the result of deep reflection, careful planning, and a deep sense of responsibility — not just to the present, but to the future of Chinese Hospital,” said Zhang. “After 32 years of service with 8 years as the CEO, I’ve come to believe that true leadership is not defined by how long one holds a title, but by how effectively one builds a resilient, mission-driven organization that can thrive beyond any one individual.”

“Yes, healthcare remains complex and uncertain — politically, financially, and socially. But I see great strength in what we’ve built together. We’ve stabilized the organization, expanded access to culturally competent care, forged strong partnerships, and strengthened the foundation of this historic institution,” said Zhang.

“Most importantly, we’ve cultivated a highly capable leadership team that is fully prepared to navigate the path ahead,” Zhang added. “But leadership is not a question of years served. It’s about preparing others, empowering the team, and ensuring long-term sustainability. I’m proud of what we’ve accomplished.”

In response to a request for comment, Dr. Roger Eng, who is a physician specialized in radiology and serves as the current Board Chair of the Chinese Hospital in 2025, did not address the issue of informing all board members about the CEO matter in the special meeting in May.

“We understand that the announcement of our next CEO has stirred strong emotions, which speaks to how deeply our community cares about Chinese Hospitals,” said Eng. “Dr. Jian Zhang has been a trusted and respected leader, and we honor her legacy. That said, the leadership transition was the result of a deliberate, multi-year process, not a sudden or hasty decision.”

“Succession planning began over three years ago, including the Board-approved promotion of our CFO to President in 2021 as a key step. The Personnel Committee reviewed the plan and unanimously recommended Michael Chung, whose appointment was then approved by the full Board with transparency and care,” said Eng.

“We acknowledge that leadership changes raise questions and concerns. While the timing may have felt sudden to some, the transition was long planned and guided by a clear succession strategy to ensure continuity and institutional stability,” Eng further added.

“Chinese Hospital has proudly served the community for 126 years, enduring and adapting through crises — from pandemics to political change. As we move forward, we ask our community to seek clarity, trust reliable sources, and remain united in our commitment to a strong future for our hospital and the people it serves.”