PHILADELPHIA – Penn Medicine today announced the appointment of R. Michael Buckley, MD, as Executive Director of Pennsylvania Hospital, effective November 1. He will take over for Kathleen Kinslow, CRNA, EdD, MBA, who has been appointed President and CEO of Aria Health System.
Buckley currently serves as Chair of Internal Medicine and Chief Medical Officer at Pennsylvania Hospital, leading quality and patient safety initiatives. He has been practicing Internal Medicine and Infectious Disease at Pennsylvania Hospital for over 30 years.
“Mike Buckley’s commitment to Pennsylvania Hospital and superior patient care as well as his demonstrated team-oriented leadership make him the natural successor to Kate Kinslow,” says University of Pennsylvania Health System CEO, Ralph Muller. “I and my colleagues look forward to his steering Pennsylvania Hospital, as always, in service to Philadelphia and beyond.”
Garry Scheib, Chief Operating Officer of University of Pennsylvania Health System and Executive Director of the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania (HUP) also praised Buckley, saying “his management expertise, leadership and strategic vision make him an excellent choice to continue Pennsylvania Hospital’s success and guide the hospital to next level of accomplishment.”
Buckley is also a Professor of Clinical Medicine, teaching Perelman School of Medicine students and residents. He has been a trusted leader at the Hospital for many years, serving as the Section Chief of Infectious Disease before his appointment as Chairman of the Department of Medicine in 1999. He became the Chief Medical Officer in 2000 and has continued in both roles since that time.
“While I am humbled to be chosen for this role, I look forward to working closely with the leadership team at Pennsylvania Hospital and Penn Medicine to help shape the future of Pennsylvania Hospital in the coming years,” says Buckley. “I have chosen to spend my career at Pennsylvania Hospital and believe strongly in our talented physicians, nurses, clinicians and staff and what we are capable of accomplishing together.”
Buckley received his undergraduate and medical degrees from Yale University, completed his Internal Medicine residency at the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill and his Infectious Disease fellowship at Penn. He is a Fellow of the Infectious Disease Society of America, has been a member of their Clinical Affairs Committee, and recently completed his tenure as the Chairman of that committee’s Quality Improvement Task Force.
Buckley will begin to the transition to his new role over the next several weeks.
Penn Medicine is one of the world’s leading academic medical centers, dedicated to the related missions of medical education, biomedical research, excellence in patient care, and community service. The organization consists of the University of Pennsylvania Health System and Penn’s Raymond and Ruth Perelman School of Medicine, founded in 1765 as the nation’s first medical school.
The Perelman School of Medicine is consistently among the nation's top recipients of funding from the National Institutes of Health, with $550 million awarded in the 2022 fiscal year. Home to a proud history of “firsts” in medicine, Penn Medicine teams have pioneered discoveries and innovations that have shaped modern medicine, including recent breakthroughs such as CAR T cell therapy for cancer and the mRNA technology used in COVID-19 vaccines.
The University of Pennsylvania Health System’s patient care facilities stretch from the Susquehanna River in Pennsylvania to the New Jersey shore. These include the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, Penn Presbyterian Medical Center, Chester County Hospital, Lancaster General Health, Penn Medicine Princeton Health, and Pennsylvania Hospital—the nation’s first hospital, founded in 1751. Additional facilities and enterprises include Good Shepherd Penn Partners, Penn Medicine at Home, Lancaster Behavioral Health Hospital, and Princeton House Behavioral Health, among others.
Penn Medicine is an $11.1 billion enterprise powered by more than 49,000 talented faculty and staff.