Avera St. Luke's CEO Todd Forkel hired to lead Altru Health in North Dakota

Todd Forkel, regional president and CEO of Avera St. Luke’s Hospital in Aberdeen and CEO of Avera St. Mary’s Hospital in Pierre, has been hired as CEO of Altru Health System in Grand Forks, N.D.

He has served as regional president and CEO of Avera St. Luke's since 2011 and began serving as CEO for St Mary's in 2015. He will continue in his positions with Avera through Feb. 20.

“Todd has been such a positive leadership force in our organization and a personal friend and mentor to so many people at Avera. We will miss him greatly, yet we celebrate with him as he has been given an exciting opportunity to lead a health system,” said Bob Sutton, president and CEO of Avera Health, in a news release.

After serving in the U.S. Air Force, Forkel joined Avera 23 years ago as a radiology technician at the same hospital where he was born – Avera St. Luke’s. He progressed to director of radiology and went on to develop his leadership skills in other positions. In 2008, he returned to Avera as vice president of clinics in the Aberdeen region.

A champion for high-quality health care, Forkel led during a time when both Avera St. Luke’s and Avera St. Mary’s have earned five-star ratings from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services and were named as Top 100 and Top 20 Rural and Community Hospitals nationwide.

“This was a difficult decision for me because Avera has been such an important part of my life and career,” Forkel said in the release. “I am truly grateful for all the opportunities I have had with Avera to serve and grow as a professional.”

Interim leadership at Avera will be announced later.

This article originally appeared on Aberdeen News: Avera St. Lukes CEO hired to lead Altru Health in North Dakota