As chief clinical officer, Dr. Thomas oversees inpatient, outpatient and emergency department services across seven hospitals, outpatient clinics and specialized care facilities, while facilitating collaboration between specialties and coordinating care across departments. He represents physicians “around the business table,” helping guide organizational strategy with a sustained focus on safe, high-quality patient care. He is also involved in major university initiatives spanning EHR implementation, root cause analysis for safety events, patient satisfaction, clinical efficiency, simulation training, professionalism and physician health. Even with executive and academic responsibilities, he maintains regular patient care, seeing patients a couple times each week to stay grounded in clinical realities and the impact of organizational decisions. Most recently, he has been instrumental in planning and executing a new state-of-the-art, 820-private-room University Hospital that aims to replace aging facilities and expand inpatient access. He also served as interim co-leader of the Wexner Medical Center for 19 months from 2021–23, and holds statewide and professional leadership roles, including zone 2 lead for emergency response in Ohio and membership on the governor’s healthcare advisory group.
