Appointment of Chief Medical Officer

Thursday, December 1, 2022

TO:All UMMC Faculty, Staff and Students
FROM:Dr. Alan Jones, Associate Vice Chancellor for Clinical Affairs
SUBJECT: Appointment of Chief Medical Officer

I am pleased to announce the appointment of Dr. Lisa Didion as the Health System’s chief medical officer, succeeding Dr. Michael Henderson. Her appointment is effective January 1, 2023.

We are deeply grateful to Dr. Henderson, who came to the Medical Center in March 2015, for his passion and diligence in creating a culture of safety, performance improvement and quality outcomes.

Dr. Didion, a professor of pediatrics and a pediatric hospitalist, is a respected clinician who has been serving as the Health System associate CMO for the past two years. As CMO, she will have oversight of accreditation, clinical risk management, infection prevention, quality and safety, and performance improvement, as well as the data management and reporting for all of those areas.

Her career trajectory includes the administrative roles of associate CMO for Children’s of Mississippi, the Office of Patient Experience’s first medical director, and the first medical director of Care Coordination.

Dr. Didion will join hospital administration and clinical chairs in overseeing a steering committee for the Office of Operational Excellence, a goal for year two of UMMC’s strategic plan. This office will expand successful practices in patient quality, safety, outcomes and experience to include operational and financial improvement work.

She is a strategic thinker, patient centered and a team leader who puts safety first and operates by the mantra of “do the right thing.” Dr. Didion is a champion of efficiency and effectiveness in pursuing the goals of quality, safety and patient outcomes. Dr. Didion is well-versed in the impact and external influences of organizations such as The Joint Commission, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Service and Leapfrog, a patient safety rating group.

Born and raised in rural Iowa, Dr. Didion received undergraduate and medical degrees from the University of Iowa. She completed her pediatric residency at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics, serving as chief resident, and was an assistant professor at the Medical College of Georgia from 2009-2011 before coming to UMMC as an assistant professor of pediatrics.

She was honored in 2015 by her selection to the Nelson Order, representing the School of Medicine. Dr. Didion has served as a pediatric resident advisor and mentor and also has guided young faculty as a program mentor.

Dr. Didion never shies away from a challenge. She assesses the task at hand, listens to stakeholders, builds teams, encourages, and takes incremental logical steps to achieve results.

I want to again express our debt to Dr. Henderson for leading the Medical Center on this clinical quality journey. His accomplishments in inspiring much-needed change cannot be understated. The performance improvement team he assembled has expanded and excelled, never wavering from the steadfast goal of zero patient harm.

Please join me in congratulating Dr. Didion on her new role.