Chesapeake General Hospital names new chief medical officer
Sept. 19, 2005 — Paul D. Chidester, M.D., has been named to the newly created post of Chesapeake General Hospital chief medical officer.
He assumed his new duties Sept.15. In this position, Chidester takes responsibility for advocating effective partnerships between CGH’s medical staff of approximately 600 physicians and administration. He will also play a key leadership role in advancing the organizational initiatives around quality and patient safety.
“Recruiting a leader of Dr. Chidester’s reputation is a tremendous achievement for Chesapeake General Hospital,” commented Christopher Mosley, Chesapeake Health’s president and CEO. “He will be taking on an exciting and challenging agenda as the hospital implements a new strategic plan.”
Douglas Carson, chairman of the Chesapeake Hospital Authority, agreed. “I am excited to have a physician of Dr. Chidester’s caliber joining our executive leadership team. We look forward to him making a major contribution to the organization with his experience, knowledge of the community and understanding of our needs as a growing acute care hospital.”
A nephrologist and senior partner with Tidewater Kidney Specialists, Inc., Chidester has more than 20 years experience in clinical and executive leadership positions. He served most recently as CGH’s care management and quality physician advisor, where his efforts resulted in improvements in several patient safety and quality measures and significant reduction in the inpatient length of stay.
Chidester also serves as the medical director of Davita Dialysis Center and an assistant professor of medicine at Eastern Virginia Medical School. He is actively involved in a number of clinical trials.
Said Chidester: “I am delighted to be joining Chesapeake General Hospital in this position and very much look forward to the challenges and opportunities which lie ahead. I will be seeking to build on the outstanding work of the hospital’s administrators and medical staff, whom I feel privileged to be collaborating with.”
Mosley added: “The medical staff of CGH has always enjoyed a good working relationship with the administrative staff. The appointment of a CMO will undoubtedly foster this relationship to support organizational growth, physician involvement and insure the provision of safe, high-quality patient care.”
Chidester earned his medical degree and completed his internal medicine residency at the University of Pittsburgh. He completed a fellowship in nephrology at the Naval Medical Center, Portsmouth. He is a fellow of the American College of Physicians and a member of the American College of Physician Executives, where he is currently pursuing a master’s degree in medical management.