In the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Celeste Ojeda Hemingway, MD, MHPE, has been named Vice Chair of Education and Matthew Grace, MD, MMHC, has been named Vice Chair of Obstetrics and Gynecology.
“The Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology is fortunate to have faculty like Dr. Hemingway and Dr. Grace, who are so committed to education and obstetrics services,” said Ronald Alvarez, MD, MBA, Chair and Clinical Service Chief of Obstetrics and Gynecology and the Betty and Lonnie S. Burnett Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology. “Their collective expertise and vision will move the department’s education and obstetrics clinical operations to new heights.”
A self-described Vanderbilt “lifer,” Hemingway’s path through Vanderbilt over the past two decades began when she was an undergraduate. She continued as a Vanderbilt University School of Medicine student, then resident and faculty member. She received her Master of Health Professions Education degree from Vanderbilt in 2013 and understands the educational aspect of Vanderbilt in a way few can.
“Medical education is a passion for me, and as the Vice Chair of Education for the department, I am able to help our education leadership teams ensure that we are effectively teaching our learners at all levels: medical students, residents, fellows and faculty,” she said. “We have amazing educational programs and incredible leaders, and one of the most exciting parts about my new role is ensuring that our programs and people are able to showcase their work.”
Hemingway said one of her goals is to connect education faculty with opportunities to further develop their skill sets as medical educators and disseminate their innovative projects — and make sure they get into the spotlight for the work they are doing.
“In the vice chair role, I get to work in service of the students, the GME trainees and my fellow faculty,” she said. “It’s an incredible opportunity to apply everything I’ve learned in my prior roles to my home medical school and home residency program.”
Grace, who was a Vanderbilt undergrad and joined the faculty at Vanderbilt Health in January 2020, has “intentionally invested” in learning how Vanderbilt Health works outside of his clinical responsibilities.
“At my core, I am a builder,” he said. “Before pivoting to medicine, I spent several years building business plans for nonprofit organizations in Nashville. But before I can build, I need to understand the foundation.”
Grace became a certified Epic Physician Builder, partnering with clinicians “to ensure our technology supports the way we care for patients,” and has led initiatives to improve obstetric ultrasound workflows across the health system. In 2024, he earned a Master of Management in Health Care from Owen Graduate School of Management, which gave him “additional tools to think strategically about health care leadership and organizational improvement.”
“I’m grateful for the opportunity to step into this role because it brings together everything I’ve been building toward — the clinical experience, operational knowledge, leadership training and relationships I’ve developed over the past six and a half years,” he said. “More importantly, it gives me the opportunity to help expand an obstetric program that is innovative, collaborative and prepared for the future, while ensuring every patient who receives care at Vanderbilt gets the personalized experience they deserve.”
Their new roles will intersect in various ways, which will feel natural given their history: Hemingway and Grace met as Vanderbilt undergrads and did three shows together through the student-run performing arts company, Vanderbilt Off-Broadway — one of which Grace directed. A few years later, Grace was a visiting medical student on a monthlong rotation and Hemingway was his chief resident.
“As Matt in his new role thinks about how we deliver obstetric care at Vanderbilt and how to optimize that work, we have to keep our learners in mind,” Hemingway said. “We have maternal-fetal medicine fellows who are in their subspeciality training, OB-GYN residents, midwifery students and fellows and medical students who rotate in maternal-fetal medicine and obstetrics to consider as we design our systems.
“We have already had big conversations about how his work can simultaneously keep patients at the very heart of what we do while also ensuring our learners have the best possible environment and experience as they train.”
Click here to read a Q&A with Hemingway and Grace about how they plan to strengthen and expand maternal health and education at Vanderbilt Health moving forward.
