Dr. Bass named vice-president for health affairs and dean of GW SMHS

Barbara Lee Bass, MD, FACS, FRCSEng(Hon), FRCSI(Hon), FCOSECSA(Hon), Immediate Past-President of the American College of Surgeons (ACS), has been named vice-president for health affairs and dean of the George Washington University (GW) School of Medicine and Health Sciences (SMHS), Washington, DC. A widely respected academic medicine leader, surgeon, and researcher who completed her residency and served on faculty at GW, Dr. Bass will be the first woman to lead the SMHS. She joins GW January 15, 2020.

At present, Dr. Bass is the John F. and Carolyn Bookout Distinguished Presidential Endowed Chair and chair, department of surgery, Houston Methodist Hospital (HMH), TX. In addition to her primary role at HMH, Dr. Bass chairs the surgery department in the Houston Methodist Specialty Physician Group and has contributed to the development of the organization’s partnership with the hospital system it serves, helping to align the entities’ academic, clinical, and research missions. She also is professor of surgery, Weill Cornell Medical College and the Houston Methodist Institute for Academic Medicine; adjunct professor of surgery, Texas A&M College of Medicine; and full member, Houston Methodist Research Institute.

Completing her residency in general surgery at GW, Dr. Bass expanded her training with a research fellowship at the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research while serving as a Captain in the U.S. Army Medical Corps, which launched her research career. After graduating, she began her career on the GW faculty as a general surgeon and surgeon-scientist at the Washington, DC, Veteran Affairs Hospital.

Dr. Bass has established a pioneering career defined by excellence in patient care, educational innovation, interdisciplinary research, and discovery and service. In her new role, Dr. Bass will be responsible for leading SMHS’ academic, clinical, and research missions and providing strategic direction on all aspects of GW’s medical enterprise, including the university’s relationships with the medical faculty associates and GW Hospital. Read the GW announcement on the GW Today website.