Unalaska clinic announces change in leadership

Unalaska’s Iliuliuk Family and Health Services announced Monday it terminated its CEO, Noel Rea, who joined the nonprofit healthcare provider in the summer of 2022 as interim CEO but stayed on in the permanent role.

Although the clinic announced Rea’s departure this week, people familiar with the matter say the clinic’s board of directors voted to terminate his contract in early June in a split vote. Two board members resigned after the meeting.

The Monday statement said Rea’s termination was effective July 3, but Rea stopped performing professional duties in May when he and his family moved off the island.

KUCB reached out to clinic officials in May and June, including to administration and board members, but they all declined to comment, saying it’s a personnel issue.

Several people with knowledge of the situation told KUCB the board hired an outside investigator to look into several complaints some clinic staff members made against Rea.

Rea said he was fired “without cause,” a designation meaning an employee is not being let go for workplace misconduct, which was corroborated by clinic officials. The nature of the staff members’ complaints has not been disclosed.

Rea said he doesn’t know why the board terminated his contract and said he has not talked to the board of directors.

Board Chair M. Lynn Crane this week declined requests to provide further details and said the Monday statement included all the information the clinic wished to provide.

The clinic said it “assures the public that all services will continue uninterrupted.”

The board promoted Dawn Johnson, the former clinical services director, to chief operating officer and interim CEO.

The board said she brings “extensive experience and a deep commitment” to the clinic and that they are “confident in her ability to maintain the quality of care that our patients expect and deserve.”