MedStar Appoints Dr. Neil Weissman to Be Health System’s First Chief Scientific Officer

COLUMBIA, Md. (February 27, 2018)—MedStar Health has created a significant new leadership position, Chief Scientific Officer, to support the health system’s further development as a nationally recognized Academic Health System.

MedStar President and CEO Kenneth A. Samet, FACHE, and Stephen R.T. Evans, MD, Executive Vice President for Medical Affairs and Chief Medical Officer have announced the appointment of Neil J. Weissman, MD, to be MedStar’s first Chief Scientific Officer.  Dr. Weissman is President of the MedStar Health Research Institute, Professor of Medicine at Georgetown University, and has a key role in the MedStar Leader of the Future Program that focuses on developing and training emerging leaders across the system. He will continue to serve in those capacities.

Dr. Weissman said, “I am honored to be MedStar Health’s first Chief Scientific Officer and excited about our potential to become a nationally acclaimed academic health system. MedStar Health is well positioned to help create the next wave of academic medicine – one in which we find the synergistic potential of large healthcare systems to improve the health of our communities and leverage the importance of academic partnerships.” 

 In their joint announcement, Mr. Samet and Dr. Evans stated,  “We must optimize the benefits of bringing together the best aspects of clinical care, academics, research, our partnership with Georgetown University, and our community connections if we are to realize our vision of positively impacting the health of our region.”

As Chief Scientific Officer, Dr. Weissman will further that vision by:

• Leading the development and implementation of scientific priorities for MedStar
• Further developing the integration of the scientific communities and research infrastructure with MedStar’s medical education and clinical partner, Georgetown University
• Enhancing MedStar’s national reputation by increasing academic publications and presentations that highlight ways in which MedStar is advancing health

The Academic Health System model integrates research, education and clinical care, unlike traditional academic medicine silos. Patients are the ultimate beneficiaries when investigators, working on real-world healthcare system challenges, create new knowledge that can be immediately applied toward improving outcomes, safety, quality, accessibility, and efficiency.

In a Modern Healthcare editorial last year, Dr. Weissman and Dr. Evans wrote: “From an academic point of view, a health system serving a diverse population in diverse care communities becomes an ideal laboratory to test different methods and determine how to overcome barriers. For the healthcare leader, this science promises to solve pressing implementation challenges.”

About MedStar Health

MedStar Health is a not-for-profit health system dedicated to caring for people in Maryland and the Washington, D.C., region, while advancing the practice of medicine through education, innovation and research. MedStar’s 30,000 associates, 6,000 affiliated physicians, 10 hospitals, ambulatory care and urgent care centers, and the MedStar Health Research Institute are recognized regionally and nationally for excellence in medical care. As the medical education and clinical partner of Georgetown University, MedStar trains more than 1,100 medical residents annually. MedStar Health’s patient-first philosophy combines care, compassion and clinical excellence with an emphasis on customer service. For more information, visit MedStarHealth.org