Johnson Memorial names new CEO

<p>Johnson Memorial Health has a new leader, but he’s not new to the hospital or community.</p><p>The hospital’s Board of Trustees announced Dr. David Dunkle as president and CEO. This comes three months after former CEO Larry Heydon resigned suddenly and without explanation.</p><p>Dunkle, a resident of the Center Grove area, has served as interim CEO since Heydon’s departure. The hospital board of trustees announced his appointment on Tuesday night.</p><p>The details of his contract are still being negotiated, but his salary and benefits as the new president and CEO will not be made public, a hospital spokesman said Wednesday.</p><p>Johnson Memorial Health is a non-profit hospital operated by an appointed five-member board of trustees but owned by Johnson County government.</p><p>“It’s a challenge, but it’s an awesome challenge,” Dunkle said. “We’re one of the largest employers in the county. You always try to offer the best care you can in your office, for your patients, but now I have the whole community to think about. I want every patient to receive that level of care.”</p><p>The board interviewed several national search firms and talked to several possible candidates for the position. But through seeing Dunkle work as the interim CEO, the board determined he is the best person to lead Johnson Memorial Health, said Jeff Dutton, hospital spokesman.</p><p>“Dr. Dunkle is beloved by his patients and admired and respected by his fellow physicians and the staff at JMH. We are very excited about the future of Johnson Memorial Health under his leadership,” Sandi Huddleston, chairperson of the board, said in a news release.</p><p>He is a Franklin College and Indiana University School of Medicine graduate.</p><p>In addition to his role as a family doctor, Dunkle has served as vice president of medical affairs and vice president of the Johnson Memorial Hospital Foundation Board. He was named the hospital’s “2018 Physician of the Year.”</p><p>He will continue to practice medicine part-time.</p><p>“I really feel like, to keep the pulse of what’s going on in the community, I can only fully do that if I’m in my office doing what I’ve always done — interacting with my patients,” he said.</p><p>His main focus right now is on improving the hospital’s culture, and making sure his more than 800 employees feel valued, he said.</p><p>“Obviously, our focus at the hospital is on providing quality healthcare to our community. But sometimes, it’s OK to take a step back and say, ‘Hey, we’re doing a good job.’ Employees deserve to be patted on the back,” Dunkle said.</p><p>Johnson Memorial Health operates a main campus in Franklin, which is in the midst of a $47 million construction project to open a new emergency department and outpatient services building in 2020. Dunkle has been heavily involved in the planning and construction of that expansion.</p><p>Johnson Memorial also operates the Greenwood Primary Care Center, the Whiteland Primary Care Center and the Franklin Primary Care Center. In 2013, Johnson Memorial partnered with Community Health Network to open the Stones Crossing Health Pavilion.</p>[sc:pullout-title pullout-title="The Dunkle File" ][sc:pullout-text-begin]<p><strong>Name:</strong> Dr. David Dunkle</p><p><strong>Age:</strong> 47</p><p><strong>Family:</strong> Wife, Amy; two children</p><p><strong>Hometown:</strong> West Lafayette</p><p><strong>Education:</strong> Jefferson High School; Franklin College; Indiana University School of Medicine; medical residency at St. Francis Hospital, Indianapolis</p><p><strong>Occupation:</strong> President and CEO at Johnson Memorial Health; part-time family physician</p>[sc:pullout-text-end]