Tisha S. Wang, MD to Depart UCLA for New Role as Chair of Medicine at Univ. of Washington
The UCLA Department of Medicine (DoM) is committed to developing and supporting leaders who will transform the field of internal medicine. As such, it is with great pride that we announce that Senior Executive Clinical Vice Chair Tisha S. Wang, MD, a physician, scientist, patient advocate and beloved leader who has served our department for the past 17 years, will assume an important and exciting leadership role at the University of Washington. Dr. Wang has accepted an offer to be the next chair of the department of medicine at the University of Washington School of Medicine, effective June 1, 2026. She will also join the UW Medicine executive leadership team as associate vice president for clinical transformation. This is a well-deserved recognition of Dr. Wang’s accomplishments and leadership skills.
“I will remember UCLA as a place where I found real friends and colleagues that supported me personally and professionally through some pretty exciting and tough times. To me it's about working with purpose, genuine and meaningful relationships, and an environment where everyone wants everyone else to succeed,” Dr. Wang said. “That is what I found here, and I could not be more grateful to Dr. Abel, the UCLA DoM and the faculty and staff here for everything you have done for our community and for me personally.”
Dr. Wang became DoM faculty in 2008 following her completion of the UCLA Pulmonary/Critical Care Disease Fellowship Program and residency in the UCLA Internal Medicine Residency Program. As an intensivist, pulmonologist, and sleep medicine physician, she developed clinical areas of expertise within rare lung disease, pulmonary complications of liver disease, pulmonary embolism care, and medical and surgical critical care. One of these rare lung diseases, pulmonary alveolar proteinosis (PAP) became the subject of her research. She is a past fellowship program director and clinical chief of the pulmonary, critical care, sleep medicine, allergy and immunology division and served as vice-chair for inpatient services in the DoM. During her tenure in those roles, she led the creation and expansion of many inpatient and outpatient services in Westwood, Santa Monica and the wider community.
Dr. Wang is a tireless advocate for patients with PAP and serves as the clinical director and vice president of the PAP Foundation, a patient-run nonprofit organization. She is also chair of the education committee for the American Thoracic Society and past president of the California Thoracic Society. Dr. Wang is a fierce champion for women in medicine and physician wellness more broadly. Her tremendous interpersonal and analytical skills have proven critical to effectively addressing many of the challenges faced by DoM, and faculty admire her leadership and unwavering support of their work.
Dr. Wang’s excellence as a leader has been recognized at UCLA and nationally with many fellowships and awards, including her selection for the highly competitive Hedwig van Ameringen Executive Leadership in Academic Medicine (ELAM) Program in 2023. She was the 2022 California Thoracic Society “Woman of the Year;” was the recipient of the 2020 UCLA Sherman Melinkoff Award, considered the highest honor of the UCLA DGSOM; received the 2019 Serge and Yvette Dadone Clinical Teaching Award from the UCLA Dean’s Office; received the 2024 American Thoracic Society Outstanding Educator Award, and has been nominated more than 10 times for the DoM Faculty Teaching Award.
“Dr. Wang has had a profound impact on our department. As a pulmonologist, division clinical chief, and department leader, she has helped guide us through meaningful growth, advanced clinical and research excellence, and inspired us through her steady, values driven leadership. We will miss her dearly, but I am gratified that the DoM played a role in the leadership development of a future chair of medicine and I look forward to collaborating as a peer and to her continued success at the University of Washington,” said E. Dale Abel, MD, PhD, chair and executive medical director of the UCLA Department of Medicine.
Dr. Wang’s last day at UCLA will be May 31, 2026. Janet P. Pregler, MD, director of the UCLA Iris Cantor Women’s Health Center, will serve as interim senior executive clinical vice chair and is working closely with Dr. Wang to ensure a seamless transition. Stay tuned for additional updates on plans to honor Dr. Wang, prior to her departure.
Please join the DoM in thanking Dr. Wang for her invaluable service to our faculty and our community and in wishing her well as she moves into the next phase of her career.
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