Keck Medicine of USC has named Joseph Ouzounian, MD, as president of USC Care Medical Group, a faculty practice plan composed of Keck Medicine physicians at hospitals and ambulatory locations. Ouzounian, who is also chair of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the Keck School of Medicine of USC, stepped into the role of president on June 1. He will serve for a two-year term.

As president, Ouzounian will play an important part within the health system as the leader of the physician practice by promoting the physician community’s clinical mission, teaching and research objectives. Alongside the organization’s leadership team, Ouzounian will help shape the enterprise’s current strategic and operational initiatives, which include pioneering new modes of innovation and growth for Keck Medicine and improving a focus on patient-centered care.

In addition to being a graduate of the Keck School, Ouzounian has been a full-time faculty member for the past 16 years. He has served as chair of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology since December 2019, and he is also the inaugural holder of the Daniel R. Mishell Jr., MD, Endowed Professorship in Obstetrics and Gynecology. After working in other health systems, his national and international recognition in maternal-fetal medicine led to his recruitment back to USC in 2009.

Prior to his appointment as Chair, Ouzounian served as director of obstetrical services at Los Angeles General (then Los Angeles County + USC Medical Center) and chief of the maternal-fetal medicine program. More recently, he continued his higher education by obtaining a Master of Business Administration from the USC Marshall School of Business in 2019.

Ouzounian has actively maintained a multidisciplinary approach to research, with nearly 150 peer-reviewed research publications, as well as numerous book chapters, reviews and other professional communications. His ability as a lecturer and his recognition as an expert in the field are demonstrated by his frequent invitations to speak at major post-graduate courses and scientific meetings in both the United States and Europe.

Ouzounian’s service record includes major activities at both the local and national level, and he has been an Invited Examiner for both the written and oral examinations of the American Board of Obstetrics and Gynecology since 2013. A member of Phi Beta Kappa National Honor Society, he is also a fellow of the Pacific Coast Obstetrical and Gynecological Society and the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists.

— Shaheen AlHaddad