photo by: Contributed

Rob Chestnut

LMH Health’s search for a new top financial leader is over, and a longtime Lawrence leader has been hired for the role, the hospital announced in a news release Monday morning.

LMH Health has hired former Lawrence City Commissioner Rob Chestnut to fill its CFO role. Chestnut will join the organization May 20.

In addition to his time as a city commissioner from 2007 to 2011, Chestnut also spent 12 years serving on LMH Health’s Board of Trustees, including six years as chair of the finance committee. Outside of those roles, Chestnut most recently served as CFO of Evolution Research Group, a national clinical trials company managing sites in seven states.

“It is an honor to continue serving the mission of LMH Health to be a partner for lifelong health as their CFO,” Chestnut said in the release. “I am committed to working with my colleagues as an advocate for our health system in this community.”

Chestnut added that his goal is to listen and facilitate an “environment of transparency and trust” within the organization.

Chestnut will join LMH about six months after the hospital’s last CFO, Mike Rogers, was terminated after hospital officials discovered he was a convicted felon who had legally changed his name in 2022 and failed to disclose those details during his hiring process.

A hospital spokesperson soon after told the Journal-World that Rogers took “elaborate steps” to hide his work history and criminal record, which led to LMH introducing a more stringent background check process for new hires in December 2023.

LMH Health President and CEO Russ Johnson expressed confidence in Chestnut’s hire in the release.

“Rob has a clear commitment to LMH Health, which shows through his passion for the hospital,” Johnson said in the release. “His years of financial experience with a range of organizations will be invaluable to us going forward.”