UC Davis Chancellor Gary S. May has appointed David A. Lubarsky to the position of vice chancellor of human health sciences and chief executive officer of UC Davis Health, which includes the School of Medicine, School of Nursing, UC Davis Medical Center, and Primary Care Network. Lubarsky is the chief medical and systems integration officer with the University of Miami Health System, a position he has held since 2012.

As a leader within the University of Miami’s Health System, Lubarsky has overseen the system’s four hospital and practice chief medical officers as well as patient safety and quality. In addition, he led the university’s self-insured malpractice program, which focuses on prevention, and patient and visitor services, including patient experience. During his tenure at the University of Miami, Lubarsky integrated programs to create systemwide consistent approaches to care and quality improvement, including a new central safety and quality office, a systemwide safety and quality governing board, a systemwide chief medical officer council, a systemwide infection control and antibiotic stewardship program, and a central PI and project management office.

“David brings to UC Davis broad experience and proven results in a major healthcare market,” May said. “He has an impressive record of sound financial management and innovative practices for a high functioning health care system that has gained national attention. His success in raising funds to meet pressing needs, including for enhanced access to Medicaid and indigent patients, aligns well with our values at UC Davis Health.”

University of California President Janet Napolitano approved the selection of Lubarsky to this role.

Lubarsky has been recognized for his success in helping establish a centralized scheduling system, improving infrastructure, and improving performance across many areas of the University of Miami health system. He raised more than $100 million annually for the University of Miami from state and federal funding sources to aid enhanced access for Medicaid and indigent patients. Previously, as CEO of the 1,100-physician practice, he turned a $100 million loss into a $32 million surplus in one year by growing patient volumes and optimizing the revenue cycle while making sure already high patient experience scores were maintained. Of note, every one of his major initiatives has explicitly prioritized quality and empathic patient care. 

Community partner

In his efforts to meet community needs, Lubarsky has worked with the state of Florida and Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services to expand access to Medicaid, forging a close partnership with the other major academic centers in Florida in pursuit of this goal. He has also been working with Florida’s state and congressional representatives to expand existing graduate medical education programs that would best meet the state’s needs and to secure the necessary federal funding, which has been frozen for more than 20 years. For the last 16 years, Lubarsky has been chief of service of anesthesia and pain management for the largest safety-net hospital in the U.S., Jackson Memorial Hospital. He served on their board overseeing safety and quality, and throughout his tenure has been a forceful advocate for a uniform high quality of care.

“It is a privilege to join this highly regarded, progressive and nationally recognized health system,” Lubarsky said. “I look forward to working closely with the accomplished faculty and staff, and routinely interacting with Davis’ talented students and trainees. I have already heard many great ideas about how to catapult Davis to greater heights, and I hope to harness those ideas to catalyze innovation so that we better serve our patients, our local community and our academic mission.”

Lubarsky held several other leadership positions at the University of Miami, including CEO of the University of Miami Medical Group, and senior associate dean for safety, quality and risk prevention. He has continually served as the Emanuel M. Papper Professor and Chair of the Department of Anesthesia since 2001, overseeing the largest anesthesia physician and Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist training program in the United States. He holds secondary appointments as a professor in the School of Nursing and as a professor of health sector policy and management in the School of Business.

From 1988 to 2001, Lubarsky was vice chair of the Department of Anesthesiology, and chief of Vascular & Transplant Anesthesia and Surgical Intensive Care at Duke University.

With more than 100 peer-reviewed publications and hundreds of invited lectures, Lubarsky is an expert in health care economics, informatics, and OR management. He is one of the top 100 published practicing anesthesiologists in the United States.

Lubarsky earned his bachelor’s degree in history and Doctor of Medicine from Washington University in St. Louis. He was the first graduate from their combined undergraduate–medical school curriculum, the Scholars Program in Medicine. He earned his MBA from the Fuqua School of Business at Duke University and was honored as a Fuqua Scholar, graduating at the top of his class. 

Lubarsky will take up his position as vice chancellor of human health sciences and chief executive officer at UC Davis Health on July 2.