Children’s Mercy President & CEO Paul Kempinski Announces Retirement After Five Years

Posted May 9, 2024

President & CEO of Children’s Mercy Kansas City, Paul Kempinski has announced his retirement following over five years of leadership at the hospital.

Kempinski joined Children’s Mercy in 2018. During his time at the hospital, he oversaw the launch of Illuminate—a program addressing children’s mental health—and opened the Children’s Mercy Research Institute and expanded the hospital’s regional growth while also navigating through the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a release Thursday.

Paul Kempinski will retire as president & CEO of Children’s Mercy Kansas City. Photo courtesy of Children’s Mercy Kansas City.

During his remaining tenure, he will continue as CEO until the naming and onboarding of his replacement.

The Children’s Mercy Board of Directors has engaged the executive search firm WittKieffer to begin a search for a new president & CEO, according to the release.

“It has been an honor to serve as President & CEO of one of the finest children’s health systems in the country. This place is enormously special and a wonderful community asset,” Kempinski said in the release. “My greatest joy over the last six years has been witnessing the amazing work of 8,000 extraordinary Children’s Mercy team members. That joy has come from moments like greetings in the hallways, chatting with our dedicated volunteers, or being in an operating room as miracles are worked on the tiniest of hearts.”

Kempinski was most recently featured in The 2023 Ingram’s 250: Kansas City’s Most Influential Business Leaders. Children’s Mercy Hospital Kansas City was featured in The 2024 Ingram’s 100: Kansas City’s Top Private-Sector Companies, where in 2023 it generated nearly $3.6 billion in revenue.