Dr. Jeff Sperring, the chief medical officer of Riley Hospital for Children at Indiana University Health, has been named the hospital’s new president and CEO, the hospital announced Friday.

Riley was left with a sudden leadership vacuum in late spring after CEO Dan Fink resigned, followed three weeks later by the departure of Chief Operating Officer Brett Lee to another hospital.

Since then, Riley’s chief nursing officer, Marilyn Cox, has been serving as interim CEO. She will now return to her role in nursing administration.

“After a national search, we determined that Dr. Sperring is the best fit for Riley,” said IU Health CEO Dan Evans in a prepared statement. “As a pediatrician himself, he has a true passion for children’s health care, he’s a valued and respected leader, he’s already invested in Riley and our vision, and has established relationships with Riley’s community partners around the state.”

As CEO, Dr. Sperring will be responsible for providing overall strategic direction and leadership for pediatric services throughout IU Health, which operates 18 hospitals around the state

Sperring first joined IU Health in 2002 as a director of pediatric hospitalists in the children’s pavilion at Methodist Hospital, another IU Health facility. He became associate chief medical officer at Riley in 2007 and has been chief medical officer since 2009.

Sperring graduated from Emory University in Atlanta and did his medical training at the Vanderbilt University School of Medicine in Nashville, Tenn. He served in the U.S. Navy Medical Corps from 1995 to 2001.

Sperring lives with his wife Amie in Noblesville.