Donna L. Washington, MD, MPH, FACP Appointed Section Chief of General Internal Medicine at the VA Greater Los Angeles Healthcare System
It is with great pleasure that we announce the appointment of Donna L. Washington, MD, MPH, FACP as the incoming section chief of General Internal Medicine at the VA Greater Los Angeles Healthcare System.
Dr. Washington is director of population health for the VA Center for the Study of Healthcare Innovation, Implementation & Policy (CSHIIP) at VA Greater Los Angeles Healthcare System (GLAHS), director of health services research for the VA GLAHS Department of Medicine, and a professor of medicine at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA.
She is a general internist and physician-scientist who leads a robust research and operations evaluation program of population health that investigates health and health care access, quality, equity, and outcomes of U.S. Veterans with a focus on understanding and addressing multi-level factors influencing unwarranted variation in health care and outcomes. Dr. Washington’s research contributions have been instrumental in impacting national VA health care delivery, policies, and strategic planning related to health equity and to delivery of services for women. She has mentored a wide range of trainees and faculty in these and other areas in health services research.
Dr. Washington received her undergraduate degree from Harvard University and her medical degree from Boston University School of Medicine. She completed her residency in the primary care internal medicine program at UCSF-San Francisco General Hospital. Dr. Washington pursued her health services research training in the UCLA Robert Wood Johnson Clinical Scholars Program, while concurrently earning a Master of Public Health in Epidemiology at the UCLA Fielding School of Public Health. Her scientific and professional contributions have been recognized with several major national and professional society awards, including the Society of General Internal Medicine’s Herbert Nickens Award, the Congressional Black Caucus Veterans Braintrust Award, the VA Under Secretary’s Award for Outstanding Achievement in Health Services Research, a Department of Veterans Affairs special research recognition award from the VA secretary, and the UCLA Fielding School of Public Health Lester Breslow Lifetime Achievement Award. Dr. Washington is an elected member of the National Academy of Medicine.
Paul G. Shekelle, MD, PhD, who has ably led our VA Division of General Internal Medicine for the last 20 years, will be stepping down from his position effective January 1, 2026. Dr. Shekelle will focus his energies on continuing his impactful research, mentorship of junior faculty, and trainees.
Dr. Shekelle is professor of medicine at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA and a COIN Investigator for the VA HSR&D Center for the Study of Healthcare Innovation, Implementation & Policy (CSHIIP) and director of the VA West Los Angeles Evidence-based Synthesis Program (ESP). He is widely recognized in the field of evidence-based medicine, practice guideline development, and quality of care, and he has co-authored more than 300 peer-reviewed journal articles. Paul received the VA Under Secretary’s Award for Outstanding Achievement in Health Services Research in 2011. He has been an outstanding mentor for numerous career development awardees and faculty members.
We would like to thank Paul for his outstanding leadership and wish him continued success in his other endeavors, while also extending our congratulations to Donna on her appointment as section chief of general internal medicine.
Related Posts
The 2026 fellowship match results are here! The LEADERS in the 2026 UCLA Department of Medicine (DoM) Subspecialty Fellows are an exceptionally talented group of[...]
The UCLA Department of Medicine (DoM) is pleased to announce that E. Dale Abel, MD, PhD, chair and executive medical director of the department, is[...]
Dear colleagues, It is with profound sadness that we inform you of the passing of Jonathan M. Tobis, MD, a respected leader of the UCLA Division[...]