05MD, 08R, 09F​ 

Lisa Didion serves as chief medical officer for University of Mississippi Medical Center, the state’s only academic medical center, children’s hospital, and Level 1 trauma center. The operational initiatives she has spearheaded have led to dramatic improvements in the hospital’s patient safety, quality, and experience ratings, demonstrating her ability to take on tough problems and lead with clarity and compassion. Along the way, she has published scholarly work on the topic of patient safety and quality, allowing other health systems with similarly limited resources to learn from her example. 

Didion began her work with University of Mississippi Medical Center (UMMC) as a pediatric hospitalist. The experience taught her the fundamentals of balancing patient safety and hospital efficiency. 

“Everything we do is a process,” she says. “Part of our goal as the health care team is to make the process cleaner and more efficient so that we can deliver safer, higher-quality care.” 

As a pediatric hospitalist, Didion collaborated on process improvements that allowed patients to be discharged sooner and on the implementation of multidisciplinary bedside rounds. She was recognized for her keen eye for process early on and given increasing leadership opportunities.  

“Over the years, the opportunity to be involved in various projects which ultimately impact the care of patients has grown and grown,” she says. “Now, as chief medical officer, it’s about leading and prioritizing a portfolio of work that benefits all patients and improves our day-to-day efficiency throughout the organization.” 

In collaboration with her predecessor, Didion’s work improved UMMC’s Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade from an F to a B+ and the overall patient experience scores by over 50% in just seven years. This remarkable turnaround has been the subject of scholarly activity on Didion’s part, showing her commitment to transparency and continued improvement for Mississippi’s resource-limited safety net hospital. 

Didion says the key to UMMC’s success was twofold: clear, easily accessible data for all caregivers and the ability to prioritize. 

“Here at UMMC, we prioritize our quality and safety work on three things. What’s important for our patients is number one,” she says. “Second is what’s important to our reputation, and third is what’s important for our finances—in that order. That’s what I love about my job. I’ve never had to divert from my personal true north of doing what’s best for the patient.” 

Didion’s leadership style is characterized by humility and a team-oriented focus. 

“I learned at Iowa that the physician is not the center of the team. The patient is,” she says. “It doesn’t matter whether you’re a physician or a nurse or you work in the cafeteria or clean the rooms. We are all there for our patients. I like to recognize the skills and gifts of  others that benefit all of us—particularly the patient.” 

Didion says the team-based approach also leads to greater accountability. 

“We support a culture where it’s OK to point things out and ask questions,” she says. “There’s always something we can do better. If we fix one thing, there’s something else that will surely come from behind and take its place.” 

The wise words shared by Harold Adams Jr., MD, 2023 recipient of the Distinguished Alumnus Award for Achievement, at her White Coat Ceremony have become a guiding principle of her career: “All you need is love.” 

“Love for your profession. Love for your patients. Love for your organization,” Didion remembers. “When you come to a hardship or a crossroads, and you’re wondering if it’s all worth it, that’s what gets me to make that first step back at it. I love what I do.”