Up close and personal with AAPL Board Members.
Where did you get your undergrad training, medical school, and post-grad clinical training?
I received my BS in biology at LeMoyne College, my MD at SUNY Health Science Center at Syracuse, and completed my residency in Emergency Medicine at the University of Massachusetts Medical Center in Worcester. I received my MMM from Carnegie Mellon University.
What is your current job/position?
I am the chief clinical officer for the UVA Health System. We have our academic medical center in Charlottesville, Virginia, and three community hospitals located north of Charlottesville. I took this newly created position for the health system in 2023. I am responsible for building and strengthening clinical integration across the health system. I am also involved in quality work, utilization management, clinical documentation integrity, access, and throughput. I work closely with leadership at each of our sites and at the system level to help expand services to the communities we serve.
Where were you born, and where did you grow up?
I was born in Norfolk, a small town in upstate New York near the Canadian border. After finishing high school there, I went off to Syracuse for college and medical school. I then did my residency in Worcester and spent a large part of my career in Central Massachusetts. After spending time at Jackson Health System in Miami and Albany Medical Center, I relocated to UVA Health in 2023.
How did you first become acquainted with the AAPL?
A colleague of mine at the University of Massachusetts Medical Center recommended the organization to me back when it was ACPE in the early 2000s. I had developed an interest in physician leadership and had begun doing some work at the medical center in that regard. I started by taking/participating in a lot of courses that were offered. I subsequently progressed to fellowship, CPE, and completed the MMM program at Carnegie Mellon University.
What have you learned so far by sitting on the AAPL board?
I just joined the board this year and am very excited about the work ahead. The current board members have been very welcoming and open to new perspectives. It is a very passionate group that is committed to making the organization stronger over the next few years. The passion among this group is palpable!!
There are many challenges facing our healthcare system currently, and many more unknowns going forward. We are an organization that already has a nice footprint, but we must make it bigger. Increasing awareness of AAPL and what the organization has to offer is critical for our success going forward.
What book(s) are you currently reading? And who are your favorite writers?
My path currently involves more medical journal reading. Hearing about what colleagues are doing to confront all the challenges on the healthcare landscape is very interesting to me. I also appreciate the opportunity to learn from others any chance I can.
I would like to mention one book I read a few years ago now. It was a book about the life and career of a true basketball legend, Bob Cousy. Being a New England sports fan for most of my life, I have been a big Celtics fan for years. This book chronicled the life of Bob Cousy from his childhood up through his legendary basketball career.
Facing many challenges in his younger life, he prevailed to unprecedented success at that time in the NBA. He is credited with really having changed the game of professional basketball, paving the way for many others to follow in his footsteps. I was fortunate enough to have gotten to know Bob as a member of Worcester Country Club. I would host a charity golf event to benefit Pediatric Trauma Injury Prevention programs annually, and he would bring a team to help support the cause. A very classy gentleman who was always a pleasure to be around. And a great golfer!
Who are your real-life heroes?
My real-life heroes would have to be my parents. Growing up in a small town in upstate New York, a career in medicine wasn’t much of a reality. People worked hard and largely stayed local.
My parents saw my aspirations of pursuing a career in medicine and went above and beyond to help me pursue my dream. Their work ethic inspired me to succeed in my pursuit. Probably even more important was the home life they created for me and the advice they would provide at every difficult curve in the road. It was never easy, but definitely not something I could have done on my own. Thank you, Mom and Dad!
What do you consider your greatest achievement?
Being named the first chief medical officer of Miami-Dade County during the COVID pandemic was one of my greatest honors. It was a very challenging time in a very challenging location. I will always appreciate the support of the leadership at the Jackson Health System and the mayor of Miami-Dade County as I transitioned into this role. We did a lot of great things to help our communities get through that time and I felt very honored to be part of it.
What about the AAPL mission excites you the most?
AAPL has been such a big part of my development as a physician leader that I can’t wait to support physician leaders as we look into the future. Physician leaders will need to embrace new ideas and tools to take on these challenges ahead of us.
Helping to increase awareness of our organization and all that it can do for physicians in their development is something I am very passionate about. We want to be that invaluable resource for all physicians as they work to excel in their roles.