Kimberly Hunter will lead University of Iowa healthcare during leadership change

Kimberly Hunter, the current chief nurse executive of the University of Iowa's hospital system, will soon take over the institution's top role as it undergoes a leadership change.

Hunter will begin as interim chief operating officer for UI Hospitals & Clinics on March 1, filling in for outgoing CEO Suresh Gunasekaran. She will bring more than 30 years of experience in the field, including two decades at the Mayo Clinic and Cleveland Clinic.

“It’s an honor to have the opportunity to lead UI Hospitals & Clinics through this interim period while also remaining rooted in nursing,” Hunter said in a university news release. “I’m fortunate to have outstanding and supportive hospital and nursing leadership teams to continue our patient care mission and stay focused on steady progress of our shared goals.”

Suresh Gunasekaran
Suresh Gunasekaran

Gunasekaran is leaving the post he's held since 2018 to head the University of California, San Francisco, health system, one of the top-ranked medical centers in the United States. He will continue in his UIHC role through the end of February.

Brooks Jackson, vice president for medical affairs and dean of the UI Carver College of Medicine, "expects to soon announce the search chair and committee that will commence a national search for the permanent CEO position," according to the news release.

Emily Blomberg will begin as Chief Operating Officer of UI Hospitals & Clinics on March 14.
Emily Blomberg will begin as Chief Operating Officer of UI Hospitals & Clinics on March 14.

UI Hospitals & Clinics also named a new chief operating officer, Emily Blomberg, this month. She will begin in Iowa on March 14 after working as COO at Hennepin Healthcare in Minneapolis.

“I am delighted to join the UI Health Care team,” Blomberg said in a news release. “I’m looking forward to quickly getting up to speed on the hospital’s clinical operations as well as discovering the Iowa City community with my family.”

Cleo Krejci covers education for the Iowa City Press-Citizen. You can reach her at ckrejci@press-citizen.com.

This article originally appeared on Iowa City Press-Citizen: UIHC names Kimberly Hunter interim CEO for outgoing Suresh Gunasekaran