Prominent Physician Leader Dr. Susan Melvin Named Long Beach Memorial Chief Medical Officer

LONG BEACH, Calif., April 26, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Susan Melvin, D.O., FAAFP—prominent figure in family medicine, medical leadership and physician education and training—has been named the Chief Medical Officer at Long Beach Memorial, among the West's two largest hospital campuses.

In her role, Dr. Melvin will partner with physician leadership at Long Beach Memorial to advance the medical staff and advocate for patients. She will serve as the bridge between the 1,200-member medical staff and management—fulfilling the vision of communication, education, collaboration and overall quality of care provided by the hospital. Dr. Melvin succeeds Gainer Pillsbury, M.D., who held the position for 16 years and continues an active role in the medical center.

"Dr. Melvin is a respected and valued leader with deep and extensive experience at our hospital, health system and on the state and federal levels," says Diana Hendel, PharmD, CEO of Long Beach Memorial, Community Hospital Long Beach and Miller Children's Hospital Long Beach. "With expertise in both patient care and management, she is an ideal advocate for our continuing quest for excellence in providing exceptional patient care and unsurpassed service."

"I am honored to continue the legacy of extraordinary physician leaders like Dr. Pillsbury and work with our incredible medical staff," says Dr. Melvin. "Long Beach Memorial is one of our nation's great hospitals, held in high regard for innovations and advancements in so many areas—from cancer, heart, orthopedics, rehabilitation and neurosciences to emergency and trauma care, imaging, pathology and family medicine."

Dr. Melvin served as Long Beach Memorial's Associate Chief Medical Officer for the past year.  From 1998-2011, she was President and CEO of Memorial Family Medicine and director of the Family Residency Program. She also served at the MemorialCare Health System level as a member of the six-hospital system's board of directors and Chair of the Physician Society from 2009-2011—a critical time when the system implemented electronic medial records and its Medical Foundation model, the MemorialCare Medical Group.

Dr. Melvin holds academic appointments as Clinical Professor at the University of California, Irvine College of Medicine, Department of Family Medicine and Western University of Health Sciences, where she is an alumna. An appointee of former California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger in 2006 to the Osteopathic Medical Board of California, she was reappointed in 2009 for a second three-year term and served as board officer.

Board certified in Family Medicine and a Fellow of the American Academy of Family Physicians, Dr. Melvin holds a certificate of added qualifications in Geriatric Medicine, is a member of the American College of Physician Executives and completed the University of Southern California Management Development Program. She completed her residency at Riverside General Medical Center, where she was chief resident in family medicine and Visiting Faculty Fellowship in Faculty Development and Geriatrics at East Carolina University. Her career began as the City of Long Beach Police Surgeon in 1987.

Dr. Melvin has authored textbook chapters and articles and speaks widely on a number of topics, including women's health, geriatrics, domestic violence and child abuse. She has been honored for contributions to medical education and family medicine, including the Barbara Harris Award for Excellence in Education from the California Academy of Family Medicine and Munzer Family Award for Excellence in Medical Education and Research.

She served on the California Academy of Family Medicine Committees on Graduate Medical Education, Public Education, Continuing Medical Education and the Scientific Assembly. Nationally, Dr. Melvin was appointed to the Faculty Development Review Committee for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Bureau of Health Professionals.

A resident of Long Beach, Dr. Melvin's many community activities have included serving on the Long Beach Lung Association board of directors and AIDS Walk Long Beach advisory board.

About Long Beach Memorial/Miller Children's Hospital Long Beach:

One of the West's two largest hospital campuses, Long Beach Memorial—a renowned teaching hospital—is the region's first choice for comprehensive care in virtually every medical and surgical specialty. Its Centers of Excellence and prominent physicians continue to receive national accolades for diagnostic, treatment and technological advances. These include MemorialCare Heart and Vascular Institute, MemorialCare Todd Cancer Institute, MemorialCare Rehabilitation Institute, MemorialCare Orthopedic Institute, MemorialCare Neuroscience Institute, MemorialCare Joint Replacement Center, Stroke Program and Emergency Department and Trauma Center. It is the only hospital campus in Los Angeles, Orange and San Diego counties with a free-standing children's hospital. Miller Children's Hospital Long Beach, the country's sixth largest children's hospital in patient admissions, is home to one of the nation's most highly regarded perinatology programs for high-risk obstetrical patients, internationally recognized neonatal intensive care unit for high-risk newborns, Jonathan Jaques Children's Cancer Center and Pediatric Heart Center. Visit MemorialCare.org/Long_Beach, like us on Facebook.com/LongBeachMemorial and follow us at Twitter.com/LongBeachMMC.

SOURCE Long Beach Memorial