Richard L. Jones Jr. announced that he will be retiring as president and chief executive officer of Abington Memorial Hospital, effective Jan. 31.

He held those posts for 11 years; he has spent 29 years with the hospital.

John Durham, the hospital's board chairman, said the national search firm Witt/Keiffer has been hired to find a replacement.

The hospital said that it expects to meet with job candidates in the late fall, and to make a selection by the end of the year.

"Although it is time for me to step down, I have every confidence that this organization will maintain its role in the Delaware Valley as a leading health-care provider which diligently meets the needs of the communities we serve," Jones said.

Abington Hospital said that, during Jones term, the hospital:

Built the Lenfest Pavilion, adding more critical care services and bringing the hospital's total number of beds to 570.

Acquired two hospitals: Warminster Hospital, in 2007, which was converted to an outpatient campus, and Central Montgomery Medical Center (now Lansdale Hospital) in 2008, which is still a 125-bed inpatient facility.

Dealt with the nursing shortage with an initiative to increase enrollment in the Dixon School of Nursing, a feeder school for Abington Memorial Hospital. The campaign raised $25 million, and enrollment in the school quadrupled.