Keith Churchwell, MD
Keith Churchwell, MD, has been appointed president of Yale New Haven Hospital, beginning Oct. 5. Dr. Churchwell will succeed Richard D’Aquila, who announced that he is stepping down after nearly 15 years at Yale New Haven Health.
Dr. Churchwell was most recently chief operating officer and executive vice president for YNHH, after five years as senior vice president of Operations and executive director of Heart and Vascular and Transplantation services. Dr. Churchwell joined Yale New Haven Hospital in 2015 from Vanderbilt University Medical Center, where he was executive director and chief medical officer of the Vanderbilt Heart and Vascular Institute.
“Keith has the perfect skills to advance Yale New Haven Hospital as a great teaching hospital and a critical resource to the greater New Haven communities,” said Yale New Haven Health CEO Marna Borgstrom. “He has distinguished himself as a strategic thinker, thoughtful colleague and collaborator. We are fortunate to have someone with his level of clinical and administrative excellence serve as the new president of YNHH.”
Dr. Churchwell received his bachelor’s degree from Harvard University and his medical degree from Washington University in St. Louis. He completed his postgraduate training in cardiovascular disease and nuclear cardiology at Emory School of Medicine.
“I am deeply honored to serve as the next president of one of the nation’s leading, nationally ranked teaching hospitals,” Dr. Churchwell said. “From the moment I arrived here in January of 2015, I knew this was a special place, filled with outstanding talent and individuals who were fully dedicated to the patients we serve. I am extremely enthusiastic about the future and the role YNHH can play in transforming the delivery of health care.”
Dr. Churchwell is currently on the national Board of Directors of the American Heart Association and is active in the local community, serving as president of the New Haven Symphony Orchestra. He is also known for his “Walk with a Doc” sessions on Saturday mornings in New Haven’s Dixwell and Newhallville neighborhoods.
“Dr. Churchwell was the perfect choice to succeed Rick D’Aquila as president of Yale New Haven Hospital,” said Mary C. Farrell, chair, Yale New Haven Hospital Board of Trustees. “When we looked around the country for candidates for this position, we saw a number of exceptionally talented leaders. However, it quickly became evident that we already had the best person right here in New Haven. His skills, talents and strategic vision, blended with his exceptional clinical background, make Keith the smart and obvious choice.”
