After serving for years as Vanderbilt University Medical Center’s Emergency Operations medical director, John Morris Jr., MD, is stepping down. Tucker Anderson, MD, and Michael Smith, MD, will jointly assume Morris’ role, effective July 1.
Morris is a professor in both the Department of Surgery and the Department of Biomedical Informatics. He also serves as associate chief of staff for the Vanderbilt Health System.
“For many years, Dr. Morris has guided the design of VUMC’s crisis response strategies and tactical applications,” said Chad Fitzgerald, JD, Executive Vice President of VUMC’s Shared Clinical Services Division. “Few people have shown such dedication to VUMC as Dr. Morris, and I wish to express my gratitude to him for all he has done for VUMC’s ability to provide lifesaving care, regardless of the situation.”
Reflecting on his time in leadership for Emergency Operations, Morris emphasized the progress of the department.
“Over the years the role of Emergency Operations has evolved dramatically,” said Morris. “In the early days, we were concerned primarily with mass casualty and tornadoes affecting the adult hospital. Currently, we work closely with Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt and our Regional Hospitals to ensure business continuity in the face of multiple threats. Over 50% of our work now encompasses failures in information, technology and critical infrastructure.”
In anticipation of the leadership change, Morris and the Emergency Operations team have been working with Anderson and Smith to prepare for the torch to be passed.
Anderson, assistant professor of Clinical Pediatrics, will serve as medical director of Emergency Operations for Monroe Carell. A former Boy Scout, Anderson has been a lifelong strategist and took the motto “Be Prepared” to heart while pursuing a career in pediatric emergency medicine. He completed his fellowship training with the University of Tennessee Health Science Center at Le Bonheur Children’s Hospital in Memphis before moving back home to Middle Tennessee in 2020 and has since worked closely with Emergency Operations to improve emergency response efficiency at Monroe Carell.
According to Fitzgerald, the position of medical director of Emergency Operations for Monroe Carell was created due to the unique nature of pediatric emergency medicine and the need to focus on pediatric mass casualty event preparation. Currently, Anderson is overseeing the effort to revamp the emergency department subplan and organize a full-scale mass casualty incident simulation to assess the hospital’s unified response.
Smith, assistant professor of Surgery in the Division of Acute Care Surgery, will serve as medical director of Emergency Operations for Vanderbilt University Medical Center. He received a Bachelor of Science in biology from Boston College and earned his medical degree at New York Medical College. He completed an internship and residency in general surgery at SUNY Downstate/Kings County Hospital in Brooklyn, New York, and subsequently completed a fellowship in acute care surgery at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, where he has remained on faculty.
Smith has worked in emergency medical services since 2005 and currently serves as the medical director of Emergency General Surgery. He is also an associate medical director for Vanderbilt LifeFlight and is the trauma medical director for the EMS Center of Excellence.
Anderson and Smith will jointly assume the role on July 1.
