John Howser

February 2, 2026

Dominic Paris named Vice President of Finance and Divisional Chief Financial Officer for Affiliate Operations

Paris replaces Karen Nanney, CPA, Vice President of Finance for Enterprise-Wide Functions, who will retire later this year after 40 years of steadfast service to Vanderbilt.

By John Howser
February 2, 2026

Vanderbilt Health acquires Tennova’s Clarksville hospital and related physician clinics from Community Health Systems

This acquisition marks Vanderbilt Health’s fourth regional hospital expansion, further strengthening its presence across Middle Tennessee beyond its already extensive inpatient and ambulatory services in Nashville.

By John Howser
January 27, 2026

Josh Peterson named chair of the Department of Biomedical Informatics

Peterson, who joined the Vanderbilt faculty in 2002, is an internationally recognized researcher and educator in the field of biomedical informatics and maintains an internal medicine practice with Vanderbilt Health.

By John Howser
January 5, 2026

Anna Hemnes named chair of Department of Medicine and system physician-in-chief for Vanderbilt Health

She will serve as the 11th chair of the Department of Medicine and system physician-in-chief for Vanderbilt Health. Her appointment was effective Jan. 1.

By John Howser
January 2, 2026

Division of Animal Care leader Jeanne Wallace to retire

At Vanderbilt Health, Wallace recruited and built a team of veterinarians and operations managers to provide a high-quality animal care program to support researchers with Vanderbilt Health and Vanderbilt University.

By John Howser
December 9, 2025

Stephan Heckers to step down after two decades as Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences chair

Heckers is currently VUMC’s longest serving clinical department chair. He credits his longevity to the department’s culture and tradition of steady leadership, with each of the three previous chairs serving for periods of similar length.

By John Howser
November 4, 2025

Allison Hanlon named chair of Department of Dermatology

Hanlon, who joined the Vanderbilt faculty in 2016, succeeds Mary Margaret “Meg” Chren, MD, the department’s inaugural chair.
By John Howser
October 29, 2025

Alice Coogan to retire; Adam Seegmiller to succeed as chair of Pathology, Microbiology and Immunology

The Department of PM&I continues to be one of the leading and most innovative of its kind in the nation.
By John Howser
September 25, 2025

Vanderbilt University Hospital’s Adult Emergency Department serves the region’s critically ill

Vanderbilt Health System’s emergency departments cared for more than 221,000 patients in the fiscal year that ended June 30.
By John Howser
September 9, 2025

Jamie Phillips named President of Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt

She brings nearly 30 years of experience in health care administration to Monroe Carell, the past seven of which have been in a chief operating officer role.
By John Howser
June 11, 2025

Heather O’Dell named Vanderbilt Transplant Center’s Executive Director and Associate Operating Officer

O’Dell succeeds Edward Zavala, MBA, the VTC’s founding administrator who is stepping down from his administrative leadership role June 30 after more than 22 years of service to VUMC.  
By John Howser
May 29, 2025

Melissa Duff named chair of Department of Hearing and Speech Sciences

She is nationally recognized for her research to understand and improve long-term outcomes of individuals with acquired brain injury.
By John Howser