The recent campaign by Nassau University Medical Center management and its supporters to resist changing the troubled hospital’s leadership has underscored the urgency for New York State and Nassau County officials to reach an agreement that will quickly bring in a capable, experienced interim operator who can turn the situation around. boat.

As the state ramps up its efforts, hospital president Matthew Bruderman, along with employees, supporters and elected officials, have spent this week bragging about trying to keep interim chief executive Megan Ryan in the job. On Wednesday, Ryan’s defenders took to social media to urge his supporters to call Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman every day “before meeting with NYS leadership,” chanting “No need for a leadership change! No interim operator!” He even forced me to say it.

The safety-net hospital doesn’t need new management, they argue. In their telling, the hospital needs only one thing: government funding with no strings attached.

This is a flawed argument built on a flimsy house of cards. NUMC’s financial troubles did not dissipate, and its top management, which included Ryan, and its management, which included Bruderman, did not significantly improve the hospital. They also haven’t articulated a detailed plan for its future or even completed tasks deemed necessary by the state Department of Health earlier this year.

NUMC’s financial problems and questions about patient care are not new. Governance rife with administrative dysfunction and political patronage remained the norm for a long time, with rare exceptions. Promises are made and not kept; little has changed.

But Ryan, Bruderman and others try to argue that’s no longer the case. As evidence, Bruderman said the hospital’s cash on hand increased from $19 million in February to nearly $50 million. But that doesn’t make much sense as the hospital’s debt to the New York Health Insurance Plan continues to grow. Each month, the hospital pays only $2 million of its $9 million debt; This corresponds to $84 million of the increased debt to the state last year alone. Total debt: $380 million.

Bruderman, Ryan, and their supporters are right about one thing: the importance of NUMC to residents, staff, and the region. But the status quo is not the answer.

Governor Kathy Hochul and County Executive Bruce Blakeman need to work together quickly to resolve this crisis. They must agree to install an interim operator who can soon bring new team members to NUMC, make necessary changes, and develop a plan for the hospital’s future. The current CEO, president and board of directors need to leave to give the new operator freedom of action. Only when the state is confident in the management and operations of the institution should it provide funds to stabilize the hospital, a game plan for NYSHIP debt, and any additional assistance the new team may need.

This is a chance for Hochul and Blakeman to boldly lead the country by making an extraordinarily important move that will benefit NUMC, its employees, and its patients. But they need to start now.