Dr. Peter Pisters appointed President & Chief Executive Officer of University Health Network

TORONTO, Aug. 7, 2014 /CNW/ - Mr. John Mulvihill, Chair of the Board of Trustees of University Health Network (UHN) and Chair of the Board's Selection Committee for the President & CEO announced today that Dr. Peter Pisters, currently Vice President of The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center's Regional Care System, will serve as UHN's next President & CEO.

"I know I speak for everyone on the Board and all members of the Selection Committee when I say how delighted we are that Dr. Peter Pisters has agreed to return home to Canada to take on the role of President & CEO of UHN," said Mr. Mulvihill.  "His background as a clinician-researcher and his commitment to patients as partners in their care will ensure that Dr. Pisters will feel at home at UHN and that the organization will continue to grow, innovate and lead healthcare in Canada and beyond our borders."

Dr. Pisters is an internationally known tenured Professor of Surgery at MD Anderson.  Dr. Pisters has held a number of clinical, administrative and leadership positions at MD Anderson from 1994 to the present with his most recent executive responsibilities being the management of 6 MD Anderson centers for care across metropolitan Houston.  Prior to his current role he was Medical Director of the regional cancer centers, Clinical Consultant for the Center for Global Oncology (now known as MD Anderson Cancer Network), Section Chief for Sarcoma Surgery with a specialty focus in the management of sarcoma and gastrointestinal cancer patients.  Dr. Pisters was with Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center from 1992 - 1994, serving as Chief Administrative Fellow in the Department of Surgical Oncology from 1985 - 1992.  He completed his internship and residency at New York University School of Medicine Center - Bellevue Hospital.

Dr. Pisters is a graduate of the University of Western Ontario's Schulich School of Medicine and Dentistry.  He holds an M.Sc. in Health Care Management from Harvard University and is a 2014-2015 Executive Fellow in the Baldrige Performance Excellence Program of the U.S. Department of Commerce National Institute of Standards and Technology agency.

"As a Canadian, I have always been proud of the health care offered to all citizens," said Dr. Pisters.  "To return as President & CEO of UHN is a unique challenge and a privilege.  I will do everything in my power to build on the legacy of those who have gone before me and expand the capabilities and reach of people within the organization so that patients may benefit across Canada and around the world.

I also want to add how thrilled and excited our family is with this opportunity and our return to Canada."

Dr. Pisters takes on the role of President & CEO of UHN on January 1, 2015

About University Health Network
University Health Network includes Toronto General and Toronto Western Hospitals, Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, and Toronto Rehabilitation Institute. The scope of research and complexity of cases at University Health Network has made it a national and international source for discovery, education and patient care. It has the largest hospital-based research program in Canada, with major research in cardiology, transplantation, neurosciences, oncology, surgical innovation, infectious diseases, genomic medicine and rehabilitation medicine. University Health Network is a research hospital affiliated with the University of Toronto. www.uhn.ca

SOURCE: University Health Network

Gillian Howard
University Health Network
Media Contact: 416 340 4636