Senior Vice Chancellor

Dr. Guzick's Building Throught Strength Newsletter

We’d like to introduce our new leader, Senior Vice Chancellor, David Guzick, MD, PhD. In the conversation below, you’ll find insights into Dr. Guzick's background, leadership approach, current priorities, and perspectives on the work ahead. Help us welcome Dr. Guzick as he steps into his new role and begins working more closely with teams across the institution.

Q: Welcome to LSU Health and to New Orleans! What are you most looking forward to about living in New Orleans?

A: Besides building on LSUHSC’s strong foundation with a drive to national prominence, I look forward to NOLA’s food, music and people.


Q: Let’s start at the beginning. How did you choose a career in academic medicine?

A: For many people, key steps in the roadmap of life are influenced by a single individual. In my case, the answer to your question is Herbert Klarman.


Q: Tell us the story.

A: When I entered college, I thought I would major in economics, but the idea of medical school was in the back of my mind. (My parents liked that idea and were saving to send me to medical school.) In my sophomore year, I had the good fortune to do a project with Professor Klarman, an economist who many in the field think of as the “father” of health economics. The project had me collect data at a few local hospitals. I found that I liked the vibe of the clinical environment and the commitment of the people who worked there. I asked Professor Klarman what he thought would be best for me – economics or medicine? His answer was “Why don’t you do both?”

 

Q: So, is that what you did? How did you accomplish this?

A: Professor Klarman explained that NYU had an NIH-funded combined MD-PhD program (called Medical Scientist Training Program) that was unique. In contrast to the other funded programs nationally, in which the PhD had to be in one of the basic sciences, NYU reserved two of its six positions for students interested in a non-basic-science PhD. Following Professor Klarman’s advice, I majored in economics but also took the pre-med courses I needed for medical school. I applied to NYU for a spot in their MD-PhD program with a PhD in economics and was lucky to be accepted. This fundamentally changed the course of my career and life.

 

Q: What was so impactful about this training?

A: Well, since NIH was paying my tuition and living expenses, the immediate impact was that my parents retired early and moved to Florida! In all seriousness though, my training in economics gave me mathematical and statistical tools that most MDs didn’t have. These tools carved a niche for me in clinical research and catapulted my career in academic medicine. Economics also gave me an understanding of markets and financial matters that, later in my career, helped me be successful in a series of leadership positions.

 

Q: Were there other individuals who were important as you progressed in your career?

A: Absolutely! In research I was mentored by Lewis Kuller, MD, PhD, a towering intellect in the field of women’s health epidemiology and cardiovascular epidemiology. Every time I met with him, I left feeling much smarter. I had several important clinical mentors, but the person who had the greatest impact was Howard W. Jones, Jr., MD, who was responsible for the first IVF baby in the United States and who stimulated me to enter the field of reproductive endocrinology. In leadership, my key mentor was Mac Evarts, MD. Dr. Evarts was Medical Center CEO at the University of Rochester and therefore was my boss when I was dean of the medical school there. Dr. Evarts met with me (along with the president of Strong Memorial Hospital) every morning at 7:30 am. He was a transformational leader. Every day was a school day for me during those years. 

 

Q: As you begin your tenure at LSU Health New Orleans, what are your top priorities for your first year?

A: In the first six months to one year, my top priority is to be a good listener. That said, one of the strengths of the HSC is the research infrastructure built by Dr. Nelson and his team. Therefore, as I learn about the institution broadly, a clear and immediate priority is the active recruitment of additional funded scientists into this infrastructure, especially in cancer research as we move strongly towards NCI designation. That process starts now.

 

Q: What do you see as our institution’s other strengths and opportunities?

A: From my first meetings with a broad cross-section of deans, faculty members and staff, it became crystal clear that a fundamental strength of the HSC is the depth of commitment of the people who work here. In addition, an important core strength of the institution is training the next generation of healthcare professionals across medicine, dentistry, nursing, public health, graduate studies and the allied health professions. Healthcare in South Louisiana and throughout the state is largely provided by graduates of LSU Health New Orleans’ training programs. Based on my meetings with community supporters and Foundation staff, a critical opportunity I’ve identified is fundraising towards a significant capital campaign to support our missions. Finally, a central opportunity is to align with LSU’s broad objective of obtaining NCI designation, reaching the upper tier of U.S. research universities and earning membership in the Association of American Universities (AAU). LSU Health New Orleans should be and will be a significant contributor to these overall LSU goals.

 

Q: In addition to the University’s education and research missions, LSU Health New Orleans also has a patient care mission. Can you comment on how LSU Health New Orleans can best achieve its tri-fold mission?

A: I am a strong believer that successful academic health centers actively promote a positive feedback loop between patient care, education and research. This is already occurring here, but my goal is to strengthen the feedback loop even more. If we do this well, in partnership with LCMC, a virtuous circle of patient care, education and research will give way to our academic health center’s growth in size, scope and stature.

 

Q: How do you plan to engage with faculty, staff, and learners across campuses?

A: I will explore the nooks and crannies of our campuses to learn about all the intriguing work that our faculty, students and staff are doing. My plan is to highlight this work in a monthly newsletter. I plan to explore LSU Health New Orleans’ downtown campus and make regular visits to the Dental Campus to listen to the people who work there and make improvements based on what I’ve learned.

 

Let’s close with a couple of fun questions:

Q: What is something people might be surprised to learn about you?

A: I follow the Canadian pop duo, Crash Adams on Instagram – love the freestylers! If you don’t know them, check them out!


Q: If you weren’t in higher education, what career path might you have pursued?

A: Well, I tried basketball but that didn’t work out. So, I guess medicine was my destiny.

 

Q: What are some tunes at the top of your workout playlist?

A: Now you’re asking for some secret guilty pleasures! There are so many but here’s a few: 
Albert King – Everybody Wants to Go to Heaven
Kathleen Edwards – Save Your Soul
Chris Stapleton & Dua Lipa – Think I’m in Love with You
BB King and Tracy Chapman – The Thrill is Gone
Habana con kola – Vente Negra
Susan Tedeschi – Midnight in Harlem
Yates McKendree – No Justice


Q: I know you like sports. I won’t ask your favorite athletes, but what are a couple of favorite athlete stories?

A: This is a trick question if I pick anyone other than an LSU athlete! But there are at least two very special, amazing stories that LSU alumni know a lot better than I do. So in answer to your question, I have to go with the afterthought-to-legend story of Joe Burrow and the redemption comeback story of Tyrann Mathieu. 


Q: Any closing words?

A: I’d like to thank everyone I’ve met so far for welcoming me so warmly to campus during my first few weeks as Senior Vice Chancellor. I have truly enjoyed meeting many of you and look forward to continuing to get to know LSU Health New Orleans through its people. Along these lines, I plan to launch a monthly internal post highlighting the great work taking place across our campuses and the people who make it happen. And of course, I must close with Go Tigers!

 

Introduction

In every nook and cranny of LSU Health New Orleans, there are stories. Stories of clinical and educational programs, stories of research projects, and especially stories of people. Some of these stories have reached the news, and some have not. In almost all cases, however, there are behind-the-scenes aspects that add richness and understanding.
 
Having now been on campus for about six months, I have made it my mission to learn about the stories that collectively make up our health science center. Every day has been a school day for me. In this monthly newsletter I will share some of these stories and try to do them justice. On occasion, as in this inaugural newsletter, I will share both LSU system-wide and campus-specific issues affecting our health science center.
 
I call this newsletter Building on Strength to reflect what I have found during my six months of learning about LSU Health New Orleans: an institution whose faculty and staff have worked in a truly Herculean manner through a series of extraordinary challenges – Hurricane Katrina in the first decade of this century, years of reduced higher-education funding in the second decade, and COVID-19 at the start of the third decade – to emerge stronger in all mission areas, to build a strong clinical partnership with LCMC Health, and to create a research infrastructure that is positioning us to reach an inflection point in the size and stature of our research enterprise.
 
For all of this, we are indebted to our faculty and staff. I would also like to especially recognize my predecessor, Steve Nelson, MD, for his decades of dedicated service to LSU Health New Orleans, and his leadership in fostering this strong foundation that we now have the privilege to build upon, including his 14 years as Dean of the School of Medicine and five years as Chancellor.
 
Strategic Plan Update
 
In the Fall of 2023, LSU Health New Orleans conducted a strategic planning process coordinated by ECG Management Consultants. Incorporating broad input from the LSU Health New Orleans community, including leadership, faculty, staff, students, donors and community supporters, this process resulted in a 2024-2028 Strategic Plan finalized in May 2024 and formally approved by LSU President William Tate in August 2024.
 
Guided by the tagline “People Centered, Health Focused,” this plan has helped define strategies around student success, clinical growth, Louisiana-focused research, reducing our state’s cancer burden, and building healthy communities.
 
Intended to serve as a living and breathing document, the plan was always expected to evolve. Now, with the passage of time and the appointment of new leadership for both LSU and LSU Health New Orleans, it is an opportune time to update it. Updates to the 2024 Strategic Plan will be developed under the leadership of the Senior Vice Chancellor of LSU Health New Orleans and guided by the deans of its six schools. As you will see, our fundamental tripartite mission of education, research and patient care remains the same, but LSU’s vision of excellence and accessibility will be further integrated into the Strategic Plan for LSU Health New Orleans.

I have met with the deans of our six schools, and with my cabinet of LSU Health New Orleans’ executive leaders to gather input on the structure of this update, which will consist of two parallel components:
 
  1. Campus-Wide Considerations: this section addresses mission, vision, values, culture, academic and research administration, NCI designation, scientific cores, educational technology including simulation, interprofessional education, marketing and communications, finance, facilities, philanthropy, intellectual property and technology transfer, government affairs, community outreach, and data dashboards on metrics and outcomes.

  2. School-Specific Goals, Strategies and Assessment Metrics: this section outlines how we will achieve excellence and accessibility in each school. The goals for each school will be described, along with the strategies to achieve them and metrics to assess progress.
Campus-Wide Considerations

Goals and strategies for all the campus-wide considerations listed above were developed and summarized in the 2024 Strategic Plan. Taking those as a starting point, we will update them as needed and seek your input.

Let’s start with mission and vision. Every faculty member, staff member, and student should be able to articulate the mission and vision of LSU Health New Orleans. They define what we do and where we are headed. Thus, to jumpstart our updated strategic plan, we are introducing draft mission and vision statements. Your input is welcome, and I encourage you to share your thoughts through our Strategic Plan Feedback Form.

Mission and Vision
 
The mission of LSU Health New Orleans is to educate the future health professions workforce, lead advancement in research and scholarship, provide exceptional health care to all who need it, and partner and advocate to build healthy communities.
Our vision is to achieve this mission with excellence and accessibility.

Specifically, the vision of LSU Health New Orleans is to be nationally recognized as a catalyst for ever-increasing excellence in education, research and patient care, to ensure that all qualified students have access to educational opportunities that prepare them for a career in the health professions and to ensure that all Louisianans have access to the health care they need.

The six schools that comprise LSU Health New Orleans – the School of Medicine, School of Graduate Studies, School of Dentistry, School of Nursing, School of Health Professions, and School of Public Health – contribute to this mission and vision in different ways.
 
Some, such as the Schools of Graduate Studies and Public Health, focus primarily on research and education, while others like the Schools Dentistry and Health Professions, focus on education and patient care. The School of Nursing focuses on education and workforce development, while the School of Medicine has the scale and scope to advance all three mission areas.
 
Each faculty member, staff member, and student contribute in their own way to achieving our overall mission and vision. Collectively, however, when our individual contributions are combined, we will achieve our tripartite mission with ever-increasing excellence and accessibility.
 
School-Specific Goals, Strategies and Assessment Metrics
 
Each of the schools that comprise LSU Health New Orleans have developed its own strategic plan to meet the requirements of its respective accrediting body. Those plans, along with the 2024 Strategic Plan, provide a foundation for this work. The dean of each school will seek input from faculty, staff and students to develop updated goals, strategies, and assessment metrics for their school.
 
Through a collection of this information, we will create an updated Strategic Plan that will guide how we work, set priorities, and allocate resources. Together, we will ensure that every individual on campus understands the goals for their unit, the strategies developed to achieve those goals, and the data used to assess progress. Across all campus-wide and school-specific metrics, a global dashboard will be assembled and populated to track our progress. I will periodically report on these results in this newsletter.
 
My hope is that this process will foster a strong sense of ownership of the Strategic Plan across the LSU Health community and that the plan will serve as our north star in all that we do.
 
Building on strength,
 
David S. Guzick, MD, PhD
Senior Vice Chancellor
LSU Health New Orleans