SGIM Announces Eric B. Bass, MD, MPH as New CEO

 , September 12, 2017

The Society of General Internal Medicine’s (SGIM) Council and staff are pleased to announce the hiring of Eric B. Bass, MD, MPH, FACP, as the organization’s Chief Executive Officer. Dr. Bass will begin this new part-time position immediately.

SGIM undertook an extensive search to find the perfect person to be the first physician to serve as the executive leader of the organization in its 40-year history. “Eric is the ideal individual to be SGIM’s first physician-CEO, leading the organization at a time of incredible opportunities and challenges for academic general internal medicine and healthcare generally,” said Thomas Gallagher, MD, SGIM President. “Eric’s deep knowledge of and commitment to SGIM, his proven track record as a leading scholar, his experience as an educator and clinician, and his outstanding interpersonal and communication skills are just a few of the reasons why we are thrilled that he accepted this important position.”

Dr. Bass has been a member of SGIM for 29 years. He has been very involved in SGIM throughout his professional career, most notably as the Editor of SGIM’s journal, the Journal of General Internal Medicine (JGIM), from 1999 to 2004, and as SGIM’s President in 2013-14. He was the Chair of SGIM’s Education Committee in 1993-96 and became Co-Chair of SGIM’s Health Policy Committee in 2017, in addition to being a member of numerous other SGIM committees over the years.

Dr. Bass is a Professor of Medicine with joint appointments in Health Policy and Management, Epidemiology, and Nursing at the Johns Hopkins University. He has been involved in research and education throughout his career, while continuing to practice as a general internist in both outpatient and inpatient settings. He is an expert in evidence-based medicine and health services research, and is devoted to assessing the effectiveness, safety, and costs of medical and surgical management strategies. He has been a Director of the Johns Hopkins Evidence-based Practice Center since 1997. As an educator, he has special expertise in curriculum development, and has been the Director of the medical school’s Foundations of Public Health course, and Co-Director of the school’s Scholarly Concentration in Public Health and Community Service. He was the Director of the Johns Hopkins General Internal Medicine Fellowship for 15 years. From 2006 to 2011, he was the founding Editor-in-Chief of a journal dedicated to community-based participatory research called Progress in Community Health Partnerships. In 2015, he became the Vice Chair for Faculty Development and Promotions for the Johns Hopkins Department of Medicine.

As SGIM’s CEO, Dr. Bass will oversee our member-based international association of over 3,500 of the world’s leading academic general internists who are dedicated to improving access to care for vulnerable populations, eliminating health care disparities and enhancing medical education. The members of the Society advance the practice of medicine through their commitment to providing comprehensive, coordinated, and cost-effective care to adults, educating the next generation of outstanding physicians, and conducting cutting-edge research to improve quality of care and clinical outcomes of all patients.

Said Dr. Bass, “I’m absolutely delighted to serve the organization that has supported and inspired my professional development for 29 years! I feel honored to serve an organization that has a truly noble mission and incredibly talented members who share a passionate commitment to core values that are more important than ever.”

To learn more about SGIM, please visit our website at www.sgim.org.