California-based non-profit Santa Clara Family Health Plan (SCFHP) has appointed Indian American Ria Paul as its chief medical officer (CMO), effective December 18, 2023.
In the new role, Paul will be responsible for developing and nurturing long-lasting relationships with health care providers and working collaboratively to improve clinical systems.
She will also provide vision and framework for SCFHP's population health efforts to advance health equity. Paul succeeds Laurie Nakahira, who has served in the position since 2018. Dr. Nakahira will now assume the role of medical director, the organization said in a statement.
Highlighting that the organization has strived to provide equitable and accessible health care for over 25 years, Paul said, "As a health care professional and CMO, I have seen the need for culturally-based and equitable care. I am excited to join a team that puts high value in both."
The non-profit's chief executive officer, Christine M Tomcala, said, "I am confident Dr Paul's many years of experience in health care leadership, including her work at a Federally Qualified Health Center, will prove invaluable to Santa Clara Family Health Plan achieving its inclusive mission."
A practicing geriatrician, Paul is a clinical associate professor in primary care and population health at the Stanford School of Medicine. She has served as a long-standing member of the non-profit's quality improvement committee and governing board while working at Stanford Health Care. In 2022, she won the value improvement award from Stanford Health Care.
Before joining Stanford Health Care, she has served as staff physician, medical director and the chief medical officer for the Indian Health Center of Santa Clara Valley in San Jose. She earned her medical degree from Calcutta University in 1994 and completed a residency in internal medicine at St. Luke's Hospital with Temple University in 2003, and followed her residency with a fellowship in Geriatric Medicine at Stanford in 2004.
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