Marit Lieng becomes new top executive at Helse Bergen: 'A clear and inclusive leader'

Summer has come and gone, but there’s been little rest in the offices of Helse Bergen. Now the most important appointment of the autumn is in place. Marit Lieng takes over as the new CEO – and she’s no run-of-the-mill hire. She is one of the country’s leading figures in her clinical speciality, and word about the new boss has been circulating the corridors at Haukeland for some time.

Let’s get one thing straight from the off: Marit Christine Lieng is no bureaucrat brought in from a consultancy firm. She is a surgeon. She is a researcher. And perhaps most importantly – she knows the heart and soul of the hospital. I’ve spoken to people who work closely with her, and the same descriptions keep coming up: “Clear, but without shouting. Inclusive, but with a decisiveness that leaves a mark.”

From the operating theatre to the executive office

It’s a long road from holding a scalpel to running one of the country’s largest health trusts. But that’s exactly the heart of why the board chose Marit Lieng. She earned her doctorate researching women’s health conditions, and her CV is packed with peer-reviewed articles in respected medical journals.

She has been deeply involved in issues such as pelvic floor injuries, complications from Caesarean sections, and the development of minimally invasive surgical techniques. In other words: she knows what it takes for staff to succeed, because she’s been there herself.

Now she’s swapping the operating room for the negotiation room. It’ll be an interesting transition to follow. Particularly because Helse Bergen is facing some seriously tough challenges ahead.

These are the biggest challenges on the horizon

Taking the helm at Helse Bergen is no walk in the park. Budget pressure is real, recruitment struggles are global, and demands for faster treatment won’t wait. I’d wager that Marit Lieng has these three items at the top of her to-do list:

• Balancing the books in a storm: Like every other hospital, Bergen is struggling to make the finances add up without compromising patient safety.
• Recruiting specialists: The battle for the best doctors and nurses is fiercer than ever.
• Tackling waiting lists: Those Covid backlogs need to be cleared, and political expectations are sky-high.

But this is precisely where her background comes into play. Marit Lieng has led complex research projects in Gaza and Palestine – a collaboration with a major university and local health authorities. If you can navigate humanitarian crises and war zones to improve maternity care, then a challenging budget round in Bergen is probably manageable.

A new era for Haukeland?

Staff I’ve spoken to describe her as incredibly skilled clinically, but also as someone who fosters a relaxed, open atmosphere. That might sound like a cliché, but in a sector where burnout is practically an epidemic, it’s crucial. She’s known for listening to employees – really listening – before making decisions.

It will be incredibly exciting to see how Marit Christine Lieng shapes Helse Bergen going forward. Will she double down on research and education as she has done before? Will she use the surgeons’ perspective to cut through unnecessary red tape? One thing is certain: Marit Lieng is the boss Bergen needed right now – not a theorist, but someone who has seen patients up close and knows what actually works in practice.