Guthrie Clinic appoints John Petrov, SPHR, SHRM-SCP, as Chief Caregiver Officer, Executive Vice President

Dr. Edmund Sabanegh, president and chief executive officer of Guthrie Clinic, recently announced the appointment of John Petrov, SPHR, SHRM-SCP, as the organization’s first enterprise Chief Caregiver Officer, Executive Vice President.

Petrov joined The Guthrie Clinic in January 2021 as Chief Human Resources Officer, Senior Vice President from CHI Saint Joseph Health in Lexington, Kentucky.  

“I am very appreciative, honored and humbled by the appointment to this new position,” said Mr. Petrov, adding, “Guthrie Clinic is on a transformational journey to become the destination where patients choose us for high quality, safe care and an exceptional experience, and where employees want to work and enjoy a meaningful and rewarding career. I am excited to partner with our remarkable caregivers and I am committed to enabling us to recruit and retain the very best talent and be recognized as a Best Places to Work.”

Petrov’s new title reflects Guthrie’s transformational change in valuing and supporting its team of caregivers, according to a press release from Guthrie Clinic. 

They wrote, “The change from the term ‘employees’ to ‘caregivers’ recognizes the important role of each person in the organization. This cultural shift is reflected in the change from Chief Human Resources Officer to Chief Caregiver Officer.” 

“As Chief Caregiver Officer, Mr. Petrov will set the vision for caregiver engagement that aligns with The Guthrie Clinic’s Mission, Vision and Values,” said Dr. Sabanegh.

He continued, “We will remain laser-focused on promoting a culture of diversity, inclusion, innovation, lifelong learning, and talent development. His leadership will be instrumental in our journey to be a regional and national destination of choice for talented candidates.” 

The press release offered that under Mr. Petrov’s leadership and direction over the past year, Guthrie Clinic has made dramatic improvements in the employee value proposition by offering market competitive / market leading wages and benefits, and creating operational efficiencies while deploying a new cloud-based human capital management system in the spring of 2022.

Mr. Petrov has a Master of Arts degree in Human Resource Management from Briar Cliff University and is an active member of the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM). He is a certified Senior Human Resources Professional through the HR Certification Institute® and Senior Certified Professional in SHRM. He also has obtained the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion in the Workplace Certificate from University of South Florida Muma College of Business.  

The Guthrie Clinic is a non-profit integrated health system located in north central Pennsylvania and upstate New York, serving patients from a twelve-county service area. To learn more about Guthrie, visit www.guthrie.org.