Newswise — Senior physician executive Ryan Walsh, M.D., has been named the chief medical information officer or CMIO of The University of Texas Health Science at Houston (UTHealth).
“UTHealth and the Texas Medical Center have an amazing reputation for patient care, medical research and health education,” said Walsh, a family practitioner. “This is a tremendous opportunity.”
UTHealth officials created the position to maximize the university’s investment in electronic health records (EHRs).
After a national search, co-chaired by Kevin Dillon, senior executive vice president, chief operating & financial officer at UTHealth, Walsh quickly emerged as the sole finalist of the search committee. “I think we were, all of us – doctors and administrators alike – incredibly impressed with both Ryan’s drive and his knowledge of this complex, evolving field,” Dillon said. “His credentials made his selection, from a very strong field of candidates, very straightforward.”
Walsh started Aug. 5.
The latest generation of EHRs are revolutionizing health care by giving clinicians instant access to need-to-know patient information, as well as enhancing the coordination of care for patients who have large teams treating them.
Whereas paper patient records served doctors well, they made it more difficult for officials to spot health trends and take the appropriate actions, Walsh said.
“With EHRs, researchers can mine patient data to identify side effects of medications. In some instances, they may be able to discover new uses for existing medications,” Walsh said.
Walsh’s duties include working closely with the physicians in the large faculty group medical practice at UTHealth’s Medical School. It is called UT Physicians and the practice is in the process of purchasing a new health information system.
“UTHealth is considering a big investment and I’ll be working closely with the physicians to make sure we get a system that meets everyone’s needs,” Walsh said.
Walsh’s assignments also entail coordinating information technology initiatives with Rick Miller, vice president and chief information officer for information technology at UTHealth.
Walsh caught the “information technology bug” during his family practice residency in 2003. “I have always been a computer nerd. They asked if anyone knew anything about computers and I didn’t get my hand down quick enough,” said Walsh, an Eagle Scout.
He started his professional career as a primary care physician. “I love doing everything. You take care of mom and dad and deliver the kids,” he said.
Walsh continued seeing patients when he moved into medical information management positions with UnityPoint Health Methodist|Proctor in Peoria, Ill., a 480-plus bed, acute care hospital system. He later rose to the rank of CMIO with UnityPoint Health, headquartered in Des Moines, Iowa, which includes 33 hospitals in three states.
In addition to his duties as CMIO, Walsh has an adjunct faculty appointment at UTHealth School of Biomedical Informatics and plans to be a provider in the Department of Family and Community Medicine at UTHealth Medical School. “I will be seeing patients here too,” he said.
Walsh received his undergraduate degree in biology at St. Louis University, where he lettered in cross country, and his medical degree from the University of Illinois College of Medicine in Peoria, Ill. He is currently completing a Master of Medical Management from Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh.
He is a member of the American Medical Informatics Association, the American Association for Physician Leadership and the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society.
Walsh and his wife, Kerry Hincks, D.O., have two children: Ally, 9; and Maddie, 7.
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