Memorial Healthcare System Hires Chief Academic Officer To Lead Graduate Medical Education

Following its initial institutional accreditation from the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME), Memorial Healthcare System has now hired Saima Chaudhry, MD, as its new Chief Academic Officer to lead Graduate Medical Education. Dr. Chaudhry will serve as the Vice President for Academic Affairs and Chief Academic Officer for all Graduate Medical Education programs at Memorial Healthcare System.

While Dr. Chaudhry is in charge of the entire graduate medical education enterprise, her attention is currently centered on pursuing accreditation for the following residency programs: Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation (PM&R), Internal Medicine and Pediatrics. Future residency programs will include surgery, obstetrics and gynecology, and others that will support the community needs of South Florida.

“There is an urgent need to support medical education in our community and create opportunities for physicians to stay and practice in South Florida once they graduate,” said Dr, Chaudhry, who comes from North Shore-LIJ Health System in New York with high credentials and proven success in leading medical training programs. “Memorial Healthcare System has so much to offer residents given its depth and breath of medical disciplines, physician expertise and its focus on quality and service.”

Before joining Memorial, Dr. Chaudhry was appointed Professor of Medicine at the Hofstra North Shore-LIJ School of Medicine, where she developed novel curricula for the new medical school. She also worked for the North Shore-LIJ Health System in New York, serving as Vice Chair for Education in the Department of Medicine. While there, she coordinated the merger of two residency programs into the 13th largest medical training program nationwide with nearly 160 residents. Prior leadership positions at North Shore-LIJ Health System include Associate Director and Director of the Internal Medicine Residency Program. She has been the recipient of numerous leadership awards and community service honors.

Dr. Chaudhry has led and served on numerous regional and national professional groups and is noted to be an innovator in the field of graduate medical education. She was selected by New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo to serve on the New York Council on Graduate Medical Education and Chairs the Association of Program Directors of Internal Medicine Survey and Scholarship Committee. She has published extensively in the field of GME and participates in numerous speaking engagements nationwide. In addition, Dr. Chaudhry is affiliated with Academy Health, Alliance for Academic Internal Medicine, American College of Health Care Executives, American College of Physicians and the Greater New York Hospital Association.

The news that Memorial is now accredited to pursue residency programs comes at a time when Florida needs more of these spots available to help meet future demands for physicians. Nationally, Florida ranks 42 out of 50 states in terms of Graduate Medical Education spots per 100,000 population. A study published in 2005 by the Association of Medical Colleges estimate a shortage of physicians in the next 10 years in areas of primary care, medical and surgical specialties to the tune of 46,000 to 90,000 nationwide. Among the study’s recommendations is to support graduate medical education programs to help with this shortfall. Memorial is well poised to train future physicians given its evolution as a tertiary and quaternary institution that provides services such as adult and pediatric cardiac transplant, bone marrow transplant, trauma, intensive care and other services.

Memorial Healthcare System is one of the largest public healthcare systems in the country and is a national leader in quality care and patient satisfaction. Its facilities include Memorial Regional Hospital, Memorial Regional Hospital South, Joe DiMaggio Children’s Hospital, Memorial Hospital West, Memorial Hospital Miramar, Memorial Hospital Pembroke and Memorial Manor nursing home. The system received the following recognition: Modern Healthcare magazine’s “Best Place to Work in Healthcare,” Florida Trend’s “Florida’s Best Companies to Work For,” and Becker’s Hospital Review’s “150 Great Places to Work in Healthcare.”

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