Cliff Robertson

What he leads—and the limits of that authority

Robertson is the system’s senior executive, a role separate from the presidency of the individual Saint Francis Hospital. The current leadership roster identifies Doug Williams as that hospital’s president. The system’s federal return describes a nine-member board of directors and five trustees who elect that board. Trustees reserve decisions including mergers, bylaw changes, board appointments, dissolution and transfers of substantially all corporate assets. Those provisions limit any reading of the CEO title as unilateral control over the institution.

From family medicine to regional hospital leadership

Saint Francis’s biography identifies Robertson as a family physician with a bachelor’s degree from the University of Colorado Boulder, a medical degree from Ohio State University and an MBA from Pacific Lutheran University. He completed his family-medicine internship and residency at Madigan Army Medical Center in Tacoma. The biography does not give graduation dates. Becker’s reported that he became CHI Health CEO in 2014 after serving as chief operating officer of CHI Franciscan in Tacoma and interim CEO of St. Luke’s Health System in Houston. Before moving to Tulsa, he also held a Midwest leadership role at CommonSpirit Health.

Career & public service

1. Before 2014

   Physician and hospital executive

   Family-medicine training at Madigan; later Tacoma and Houston executive roles. Exact dates are not established here.

   Saint Francis — Cliff Robertson biography ↗Becker’s — Robertson career and leadership interview ↗
2. 2014–2021

   CHI Health leadership

   Led CHI Health before his move to Tulsa.

   Becker’s — Robertson career and leadership interview ↗Catholic Health World — Saint Francis leadership transition ↗
3. July 1, 2021

   Saint Francis CEO transition

   Succeeded Jake Henry Jr. as system president and CEO.

   Saint Francis appointment announcement, reproduced by DOTmed ↗Catholic Health World — Saint Francis leadership transition ↗
4. May 2024

   Mental-health advisory appointment

   Named to the inaugural GRAND Mental Health advisory council.

   GRAND Mental Health — advisory council announcement ↗
5. January 29, 2026

   Chamber inauguration

   Inaugurated as 2026 chair; TCF identifies his ex officio trustee seat through that office.

   Tulsa Regional Chamber — 2026 chair inauguration ↗Tulsa Community Foundation · Board of Trustees ↗
6. January 30, 2026

   Trauma-training approval

   OSU regents approved residency and fellowship positions at Saint Francis.

   OSU — regents approve trauma training partnership ↗
7. February 2026

   Bristow operating transition

   Saint Francis assumed operations under a lease; city ownership continued.

   Becker’s — Saint Francis takes over Bristow hospital ↗

People, institutions and the relationships between them

Following the connections

Each step below represents a documented relationship. Dates and roles belong to the individual links; a path can span different periods.

Documented relationships

22 documented relationships · Historical and current roles remain distinct.

Dated public records

Compensation & campaign finance

Insurance negotiations and public consequences

A dispute with Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Oklahoma threatened to remove Saint Francis from the insurer’s network in 2021. Public Radio Tulsa reported that a July 26 agreement averted that disruption after months of negotiations. Robertson had started July 1; the full negotiation period should not be attributed to his tenure. A later joint announcement described a new agreement effective August 1, 2024 covering system hospitals and clinics. These negotiations show one practical consequence of executive decisions: whether patients can use a hospital under an insurer’s network terms. The historical agreements do not verify coverage for a particular patient’s plan today.

The 2021 move to Tulsa

The Saint Francis appointment announcement said the system’s trustees selected Robertson to succeed Jake Henry Jr., with the transition effective July 1, 2021. Catholic Health World independently reported the succession within the Catholic hospital sector. The appointment establishes an executive employment relationship; it does not establish personal ownership of the nonprofit system or membership on every related organization’s board.

Chamber chair and an ex officio foundation seat

At his January 29, 2026 inauguration, Robertson framed public safety, recruitment of skilled workers and coordination around mental health as priorities for his Chamber year. These were announced aims, not demonstrated results. The Chamber’s roster separates his chairmanship from Mike Neal’s professional president-and-CEO position. Tulsa Community Foundation identifies Robertson’s trusteeship as ex officio through the Chamber chairmanship. Its board collectively oversees fiscal and investment policy and grants. This is a specific institutional route from business leadership into philanthropy, rather than evidence that Robertson individually directs the foundation’s funds.

Hospital advocacy and mental-health advice

The Oklahoma Hospital Association lists Robertson as its at-large physician member on the 2026 board. GRAND Mental Health named him to an advisory council announced in May 2024. The latter appointment placed him in an advisory group concerned with behavioral-health services; the announcement does not establish that he became a governing director or that the advisory appointment continues today.

The Warren foundation and the hospital system

The William K. Warren Foundation’s history says the foundation was created in 1945 and established Saint Francis Hospital in 1960 and Laureate Psychiatric Clinic and Hospital in 1989. It describes continuing annual grant support for the health system. The foundation, the hospitals it helped establish and the system Robertson manages remain distinct institutions. This historical and financial connection helps explain the system’s philanthropic setting; it does not show that Robertson holds a foundation office or controls its grants.

A public-private route into trauma training

On January 30, 2026, Oklahoma State University’s regents approved new residency and fellowship positions for the Oklahoma State University Center for Health Sciences at Saint Francis’s Level I trauma center. OSU’s account connects that decision to June 2025 legislation authorizing a partnership involving the OSU Medical Authority and OSU Medical Trust. It also reports that Saint Francis received a three-year Level I verification from the American College of Surgeons in September 2025. Robertson publicly supported the training partnership. The approvals establish a collaboration among a private health system and public medical institutions; they do not, by themselves, establish how many positions have since been filled or what patient outcomes followed.

Operating a city-owned hospital in Bristow

Saint Francis announced the Bristow lease after City Council approval in November 2025. Becker’s reported the operating transition in February 2026 under a five-year lease while the city retained ownership. That distinction matters: taking responsibility for operations did not mean buying the public asset. At the transition, the facility offered round-the-clock urgent care while an emergency-room license was pending. The current institutional location page describes 24/7 care with emergency-level capabilities. An original licensing record would be needed to resolve the later formal licensing status.

What the compensation filing actually reports

The system’s return filed May 12, 2026 reports Robertson’s calendar-2024 compensation, within its fiscal year ending June 30, 2025. Schedule J totals $2,411,089: $1,394,422 base pay, $647,000 bonus/incentive compensation, $47,481 other reportable compensation, $301,850 retirement or deferred compensation and $20,336 nontaxable benefits. These are filing categories, not a current salary rate or take-home-pay figure. The total is not added to overlapping compensation disclosures from affiliated hospitals.

Disclosed oversight and conflicts policy

In Schedule O, the system says its compensation committee reviews senior management pay annually using independent consultants and comparative data. It also reports annual conflict disclosures from trustees, directors and managers and a policy of recusal when conflicts arise. These are the institution’s representations in a federal filing. They do not constitute a count of Robertson’s recusals or independent verification of each compensation decision.

Check the record

Sources & corrections

Research checked 2026-10-03. Roles and financial figures retain their source dates. Sections appear only when supported material is available; an omitted section is not a finding that no such relationship exists.

1. Tulsa Regional Chamber — 2026 Board ↗

   primary · Checked 2026-10-03

   Executive Committee: Dr. Cliff Robertson, Chair, Saint Francis Health System.

2. Saint Francis — Cliff Robertson biography ↗

   institutional-biography · Checked 2026-10-03

   Current CEO and institutional account of education; degree dates not supplied.

3. Saint Francis appointment announcement, reproduced by DOTmed ↗

   reprinted-primary · Source date 2021-05-07 · Checked 2026-10-03

   April 16, 2021 institutional release, published May 7; trustees selected Robertson, effectiveJuly 1, 2021.

4. Catholic Health World — Saint Francis leadership transition ↗

   trade-reporting · Source date 2021-05-11 · Checked 2026-10-03

   Lisa Eisenhauer; Henry retirement June 30 and Robertson succession July 1.

5. Becker’s — Robertson career and leadership interview ↗

   reporting-and-interview · Source date 2020-08-04 · Checked 2026-10-03

   Kelly Gooch, introductory career account and attributed interview; CHI entry 2014, prior Houston/Tacoma posts.

6. Tulsa Regional Chamber — 2026 chair inauguration ↗

   primary · Source date 2026-01-30 · Checked 2026-10-03

   January 29 inauguration; public safety, talent and mental-health priorities are announced goals.

7. Oklahoma Hospital Association — Board of Directors ↗

   primary · Checked 2026-10-03

   At-large physician member: Dr. Cliff Robertson (2026). No exact term dates inferred.

8. GRAND Mental Health — advisory council announcement ↗

   primary · Source date 2024-05-13 · Checked 2026-10-03

   Posted May 13, 2024, announcement dated May 6; Robertson and Michael Baker named advisers. Appointment is historical; continuing service not established.

9. William K. Warren Foundation — institutional history ↗

   primary · Checked 2026-10-03

   Foundation created 1945; Saint Francis Hospital 1960 and Laureate 1989; annual system grants described without amounts.

10. Saint Francis — executive leadership ↗

    primary · Checked 2026-10-03

    System CEO Robertson and separate Saint Francis Hospital president Doug Williams.

11. OSU — regents approve trauma training partnership ↗

    primary · Source date 2026-01-30 · Checked 2026-10-03

    January 30 regent approval; June 2025 legislative authorization; September 2025 ACS verification. Approval not proof positions filled.

12. Becker’s — Saint Francis takes over Bristow hospital ↗

    independent-reporting · Source date 2026-02-17 · Checked 2026-10-03

    February 2026 operating transition; five-year lease; city retains ownership; initial urgent care pending ER license.

13. Saint Francis — Bristow lease announcement ↗

    primary · Source date 2025-11-25 · Checked 2026-10-03

    November 24 City Council lease approval; February 2026 planned operational transition.

14. Saint Francis — Bristow location ↗

    primary · Checked 2026-10-03

    Current page describes 24/7 care with emergency-level capabilities; not an original license record.

15. Public Radio Tulsa — network dispute resolves ↗

    independent-reporting · Source date 2021-07-27 · Checked 2026-10-03

    Chris Polansky; July 26 agreement after months of negotiations; Robertson statement following July 1 arrival.

16. Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Oklahoma — Saint Francis agreement ↗

    primary · Source date 2024-07-17 · Checked 2026-10-03

    Joint announcement; new hospital/clinic network agreement effectiveAugust 1, 2024. No present individual-plan coverage inferred.

17. Saint Francis Health System Inc — original Form 990 ↗

    public-record · Source date 2026-05-12 · Checked 2026-10-03

    EIN 73-1501972, FYJuly 1, 2024–June 30, 2025; submitted May 12, 2026. Printedp 7, Part VII A row 1, columnsD/E/F; calendar 2024 compensation basis. Latest filing on retrieved index.

18. Saint Francis Health System Inc — Schedule J compensation ↗

    public-record · Source date 2026-05-12 · Checked 2026-10-03

    Original table visually inspected. Printedp 2 Part II row 1: B(i)1394422; B(ii)647000; B(iii)47481; C 301850; D 20336; E 2411089; F 0. USD, calendar 2024 compensation, FYended June 30, 2025; filed May 12, 2026.

19. Saint Francis Health System Inc — Schedule O governance ↗

    public-record · Source date 2026-05-12 · Checked 2026-10-03

    Part VI lines 1a,7a/7b,12c,15a/15b; trustee reserved powers, board structure, reported conflict and compensation policies. FYended June 30, 2025; filed May 12, 2026.

20. Tulsa Community Foundation · Board of Trustees ↗

    Primary source · Checked 2026-10-03

    Cliff Robertson trustee entry, Saint Francis employer, footnote 3: ex officio trustee as Tulsa Regional Chamber chair. Dated retrieval preserves the earlier shared source snapshot.