Michael Chang, M.D., USA Health chief medical officer and associate vice president for medical affairs, has been selected by Becker’s Hospital Review for its 2025 list of Chief Medical Officers to Know.
Chang leads clinical, quality and safety initiatives for the 7,700-employee academic health system for the University of South Alabama. Since joining USA Health in 2018, he has spearheaded efforts to improve care access, safety and efficiency, notably establishing a surgical quality program modeled after the American College of Surgeon’s best practices.
Becker’s stated of its selection, “These physician leaders play a pivotal role in advancing patient safety, maintaining high quality standards, bridging the gap between leadership and medical staff, and managing risk. As key drivers of continuous improvement, their efforts have earned numerous quality and safety accolades for their organizations.”
Under Chang’s guidance, USA Health has reduced its serious safety event rate by more than 70%, earning the HX Achievement Award for Serious Safety Event Rate Reduction. He also played a key role in USA Health’s 2023 acquisition of Providence Hospital, managing medical staff and ensuring a smooth transition.
“We are very grateful to have someone of Dr. Chang’s caliber leading our medical staff,” said John Marymont, M.D., MBA, dean of Frederick P. Whiddon College of Medicine at the University of South Alabama and vice president for medical affairs. “Not only does he bring decades of expertise and insight on quality issues, he also is a true servant leader.”
Before joining USA Health, Chang spent 24 years in various roles at Wake Forest Baptist Health in Winston Salem, North Carolina. He received his bachelor’s degree from Vanderbilt University in Nashville and his medical degree from the University of Alabama at Birmingham. He completed his residency in general surgery at UAB and his fellowship training in surgical critical care and trauma surgery at Vanderbilt.