Hawaii’s public hospitals are getting a new leader.

Bruce Anderson has been named president of Hawaii Health Systems Corp., which runs a network of 12 public hospitals, mostly in rural areas, across Hawaii. Its hospitals include Maui Memorial Medical Center, Kau Hospital, and Kahuku Medical Center.

Anderson is scheduled to assume his new post on April 11, succeeding interim president Alice Hall.

Anderson has served as the director of the state Department of Health and as Hawaii Pacific University’s director of health and science programs, as well as the environmental health program director at the University of Hawaii’s medical school.

HHSC Chairman Avery Chumbley said Thursday that Anderson’s experiences in public health and as Health Department director provide him with the ideal background for the position.