MITCHELL,S.D. — Thomas A. Clark has accepted the position of President and CEO of Avera Queen of Peace Hospital and will begin his new responsibilities on Monday, July 11.
For the past nine years, hehas served as CEO of Bluffton Regional Medical Center, Bluffton, IN; he also served two years as Chief Operating Officer for Bluffton Regional. He has nearly 25 years of experience in health care, 12 years as a Chief Executive Officer, and has served as a Director and Vice President.
According to Fred Slunecka, COO, Avera Health, “Tom’s years of experience in health care have prepared him to serve in the leadership role at Avera Queen of Peace; he has a great understanding of team work and having worked as a Director and Vice President, he has a great appreciation for the skills and collective knowledge represented in the management staff. He will be an excellent addition and will help Avera Queen of Peace move toward their strategic vision.”
During his tenure in Bluffton, Clark successfully merged two hospitals into one organization that is now reliably profitable. He led a process that built the management team and then worked to establish a new culture that has led Bluffton Regional to be a top performer in the country on quality scores, as well as placing in the top 5% nationally for patient satisfaction. Employee and medical staff satisfaction scores are also at all-time highs.
As President and CEO of Avera Queen of Peace Hospital, Clark will not only be responsible for the hospital, but will also have oversight for Avera Brady Health and Rehab and Avera Brady Assisted Living, and numerous owned clinics within Avera Medical Group in the Mitchell region, and the soon-to-be established Avera Urgent Care clinic.
His responsibilities also include providing leadership to the four hospitals in the Mitchell region: Avera Weskota Memorial Hospital in Wessington Springs, Avera De Smet Memorial Hospital, Platte Health Center Avera, and Avera St. Benedict Hospital in Parkston, and their associated nursing homes. Clark will also represent the Mitchell region at the Avera Operations Council, the Avera Presidents Advisory Board, and numerous other meetings and gatherings.
Clark is a Fellow in the American College of Healthcare Executives and is a Health Facility Administrator. He has been a member of the Indiana Hospital and Health Association’s Governance Council and served as President of the Wells Community Health Services Foundation. He is Past President of the Wells County Chamber of Commerce and Economic Development Corporation and has served as a board member and officer for Wells County EMS, Inc., Family Hospice of Northeast Indiana, and the YMCA of Wells County. Bluffton Regional Medical Center received the 2007 Outstanding Business of the Year Award at the Wells County Chamber of Commerce and Economic Development event under his leadership.
Roger Musick, Avera Queen of Peace Board Chair, stated, “As President of the local search committee, I had the opportunity to participate in the interview process with the candidates and we were very impressed with Tom’s accomplishments. He describes himself as ‘down to earth and approachable with strong Midwestern values.’ That is certainly how we experienced him. He understands the need to develop strong relationships with the medical staff, community leaders, and his Board of Directors, and he places high priority on employee relationships. We have had an eight year positive relationship with Tom Rasmusson and I’m looking forward to working with his successor, Tom Clark.”
According to Slunecka, “We employed the services of a search firm, Spencer Stuart, from Chicago to organize and forward the search for Tom Rasmusson’s replacement; we received over 400 applications which were eventually narrowed down to just two which the Avera Queen of Peace search committee interviewed. We had two excellent candidates and the search committee chose to offer the position to Tom Clark which he accepted. Tom and his wife, Betty, may be in Mitchell over the next several weeks looking for housing and getting acquainted with the hospital and community, but his first day on the job is expected to be July 11, 2011. In the interim, I have asked the Avera Queen of Peace administrative staff to be responsible for the daily operations, and I will remain available should the need arise for CEO input.”
Photo Source: http://www.avera.org.
