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The University of Vermont Health Network and UVM Larner College of Medicine Select Jason Sanders, MD, as Executive Clinical Leader and Senior Associate Dean

The University of Vermont Health Network, the UVM Health Network Medical Group and the UVM Larner College of Medicine are pleased to announce that Jason Sanders, MD, MBA, has been appointed to fill three critical executive leadership roles – President and CEO of the Medical Group, Network Executive Vice President for Clinical Affairs, and Senior Associate Dean for Clinical Affairs at the Larner College of Medicine.

Headshot of Dr. Jason Sanders.
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BURLINGTON, Vt. – The University of Vermont Health Network, the UVM Health Network Medical Group and the UVM Larner College of Medicine are pleased to announce that Jason Sanders, MD, MBA, has been appointed to fill three critical executive leadership roles – President and CEO of the Medical Group, Network Executive Vice President for Clinical Affairs, and Senior Associate Dean for Clinical Affairs at the Larner College of Medicine.

He will begin his work for the Network and the College in February, succeeding Claude Deschamps, MD, who stepped down at the end of September, 2021.

Dr. Sanders comes from the University of Oklahoma (OU) Health Sciences Center, where he has served as Senior Vice President and Provost since 2015. As the chief executive for the university’s comprehensive academic health center, Dr. Sanders oversees seven colleges and all clinical, research, and educational programs in Oklahoma City, Tulsa, and across the state, including the OU Physicians group practice and National Cancer Institute-designated Stephenson Cancer Center.

“I'm excited to join UVM Health Network at a critical time in its evolution," said Dr. Sanders. “This network is a national example of how a health system can work collaboratively with a multi-specialty medical group to improve the care experience and achieve better patient outcomes. I look forward to drawing on my experience to help further unify the Network. I'm also eager to help define what value-based care looks like in rural and community settings, as well as promote the unique abilities of an academic health system to bring innovative care to patients and educate the future clinical workforce."

Dr. Sanders has spent the bulk of his career in Oklahoma, but he has strong New England connections through his medical training. He earned his medical degree and a master’s degree in business administration from Harvard, and was an intern and resident at Massachusetts General Hospital.

He will lead the UVMHN Medical Group as it navigates the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and launches numerous strategic initiatives as part of the Network’s multi-year Access Action Plan. As Senior Associate Dean for Clinical Affairs, he will join the senior leadership team in advancing research and education at the UVM Larner College of Medicine, ensuring all three missions of the academic health system – clinical, research and education – continue to be realized.

Additionally, he will work closely with department chairs and health care service leaders, and actively collaborate with the affiliate Network hospitals to advance a common vision for clinical and academic growth across the Health Network  He will play a key role in the Network’s continued leadership in transitioning to value-based care, including standardizing quality metrics and transforming the care-delivery model. Dr. Sanders will also lead efforts to recruit and retain a dynamic and diverse provider workforce with the medical expertise our patients need.

“These are extremely challenging times for health care providers, and we know Dr. Sanders is the right leader at the right time for advancing our clinical, research and educational missions,” said John R. Brumsted, President and CEO of the UVM Health Network. “He will continue to integrate our academic health system, further our transition to value-based care, and ensure we can meet our patients’ and communities’ needs in a high-quality, sustainable way, now and into the future."

"Jason Sanders brings experience, talents and core values that will be tremendously valuable to our College,” said Richard L. Page, MD, Dean of the Larner College of Medicine. I look forward to working with Dr. Sanders in support of our clinical chairs and clinical faculty."

Robert Pierattini, MD, has provided interim leadership for these roles since July. He previously served as Chair of the Department of Psychiatry for the UVMHN Medical Group and the Larner College of Medicine. A long-tenured department chair, Dr. Pierattini continues to provide expertise on mental health and psychiatric care to the residents in our region.

About The University of Vermont Health Network

The University of Vermont Health Network is an academic health system comprised of six affiliate hospitals, a multi-specialty medical group, and a home health agency. We serve the residents of Vermont and northern New York with a shared mission: working together, we improve people’s lives.  Our partners include:

Our 4,000 health care professionals are driven to provide high-quality, cost-efficient care as close to home as possible. Strengthened by our academic connection to the University of Vermont, each of our hospitals remains committed to its local community by providing compassionate, personal care shaped by the latest medical advances and delivered by highly skilled experts.

About The Robert Larner, M.D. College of Medicine at the University of Vermont

Founded in 1822, The Larner College of Medicine is the seventh oldest medical school in the nation. The College's mission is to educate a diverse group of dedicated physicians and biomedical scientists to serve across all the disciplines of medicine; to bring hope to patients by advancing medical knowledge through research; to integrate education and research to advance the quality and accessibility of patient care; and to engage with our communities to benefit Vermont and the world.

A historic 2016 gift from Class of 1942 graduate Dr. Robert Larner and his wife, Helen, further strengthened the College's efforts to provide a medical education that is second to none.