March 18, 2021

Coming Full Circle | Meet Matt Kunkel

Central

In early 2020, Matt Kunkel was enjoying what many Minnesotans would view as an enviable situation. He was living on the beach in Santa Barbara, Calif., with his wife and two young kids. And while winter was settling in, that just meant the comfortable 70-degree weather would be dipping down to the 60s.  “My kids had it pretty good,” said Kunkel. “Their two favorite things were going to the beach and going to the zoo in town.” 

And some might say Kunkel had it pretty good too. He had spent the last decade leading teams at some of California’s most well-regarded health systems, including Sutter Health, Stanford Health Care, and Ridley-Tree Cancer Center. But when the pandemic hit California and the rest of the U.S., everything changed.

“Santa Barbara checked so many boxes of things we wanted in life,” said Kunkel.  But not being able to see family due to the pandemic proved difficult. See, while Kunkel had spent 10 years in California, he was born and raised in Minnesota. In fact, he grew up in St. Cloud and attended St. John’s University before heading west.

“When we were in California, we were still able to see family pretty often,” said Kunkel. “But during the pandemic, that was no longer an option. My family was still in St. Cloud and my wife also has family in the area. We always talked about moving back to Minnesota at some point, and when COVID hit, we realized that time was now.”

Coming home

When he saw a career opportunity at CentraCare, he was excited about the possibility. And when he was offered the job of Vice President, Specialty Care Division, it felt almost too good to be true. “It all fell into place,” said Kunkel. Although as he transitions his family back to the area, he points out that he’s living in his parents’ basement until they find a house. “We wanted to be close, but not quite this close,” he joked.

“We wanted to be close, but not quite this close,” he joked.

It was also a homecoming of sorts because Kunkel’s first job in healthcare was at CentraCare. “I was in college at St. John’s and had the opportunity to be an administrative intern for Joe Hellie,” said Kunkel. Hellie, who is CentraCare’s Vice President of Strategy and Network Development, was overseeing the Emergency Department at the time.

Through the internship, he had the opportunity to observe behavioral health patients and learn about their healthcare experience – from presenting in the emergency department to receiving care on the adult mental health unit. It opened his eyes to the level of care people in his community needed, and it gave him a new appreciation for the people who provided these crucial services. It was the spark that led him to pursue a career in health care.

After three years at Mayo Clinic, he pursued a Master’s of Healthcare Administration at the University of Minnesota. He then moved to California and spent the next decade leading many different healthcare operations, ranging from cardiovascular services to cancer care to palliative care. All those experiences helped prepare him for this new opportunity at CentraCare.

Settling in

“I’m still getting acclimated, but it’s been amazing so far,” he said. “Walking through the halls and meeting with people, I can see, hear and feel a strong culture. I’m reminded why Minnesotans have a reputation as Minnesota nice.”

“Walking through the halls and meeting with people, I can see, hear and feel a strong culture. I’m reminded why Minnesotans have a reputation as Minnesota nice.”

As he gets settled into the organization, Matt sees two opportunities that stand out in the year ahead. One is continuing to improve decision making and the other is helping staff recharge. “The pace of change this past year was astounding and empowering teams to make decisions helped CentraCare adapt quickly,” he said. “And through it all, people are exhausted from the pandemic, so we need to keep supporting each other. If we do that, we’ll be ready for whatever challenges come next.”