Mass General Brigham Names Health Care Equity Leader as System’s First Chief Medical Officer

Thomas D. Sequist, MD, MPH, takes on expanded role to lead quality, health equity, and patient experience collaboration across the region’s largest health care system.

As Chief Patient Experience and Equity Officer, Dr. Sequist has worked to ensure that all patients who enter a Mass General Brigham facility for care are treated with respect and dignity regardless of ethnicity or income, while achieving the best medical outcomes possible. He was also a key architect in the development and deployment of the system’s United Against Racism priority, and led the system in making tremendous strides to remove race in clinical protocols, increase screening and resources to reduce health gaps, and improve access to care for patients. Prior to dedicating his time to the system’s response to the pandemic, he led the redesign of what is now Mass General Brigham Urgent Care.

In his new role, Dr. Sequist will be responsible for developing and executing strategy, policy and metrics for quality, patient safety, pharmacy, community health equity and patient experience across the Mass General Brigham system. He will lead and facilitate collaboration among all chief medical officers and chief quality officers at member hospitals to establish consistent patient experiences and quality outcomes for patients everywhere. 

About Dr. Sequist
Dr. Sequist is a physician at the Brigham and Women's Hospital, Phyllis Jen Center for Primary Care, and a professor of Internal Medicine and Health Care Policy a Harvard Medical School. He also serves as the Director of the Four Directions Summer Research Program at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and the Medical Director of the Brigham and Women’s Hospital Physician Outreach Program with the Indian Health Service. 

As a member of the Taos Pueblo tribe in New Mexico, Dr. Sequist has conducted influential health policy research to advance understanding of healthcare for indigenous Americans. An internationally recognized researcher in health care quality, health policy and equity, Dr. Sequist has received continuous federal funding for his research since 2005. He is an elected member of the National Academy of Medicine and has been named a Top 25 Minority Leader in Healthcare by Modern Healthcare. In addition, he has published more than 100 peer-reviewed articles in prominent publications including The New England Journal of Medicine, the Journal of the American Medical Association and Health Affairs.

Dr. Sequist graduated from Cornell University with a Bachelor of Science in chemical engineering and received his medical degree from Harvard Medical School and his Master of Public Health from the Harvard School of Public Health.

“I am excited and humbled by this unique opportunity to guide Mass General Brigham in its mission to provide exceptional and equitable care to patients across New England and beyond who enter our clinics and hospitals,” said Dr. Sequist. “We will work together with leaders at our renowned member hospitals to foster collaboration and innovation to achieve of our mission of enhancing patient care and serving the community.”