Indian Health Service welcomes new chief medical officer for the Great Plains Area

The Indian Health Service Great Plains Area today announces that a new chief medical officer, Lee Lawrence, M.D., has joined the organization to serve as the lead regional expert on IHS medical and public health services, providing technical leadership and guidance to facility chief medical officers and clinical staff in the region.

"We are pleased that Dr. Lawrence joined the team in the IHS Great Plains Area. His extensive experience as an emergency doctor and expertise in quality improvement as a physician leader will help IHS in providing quality care to American Indian and Alaska Native patients," said Acting Great Plains Area Director Captain Chris Buchanan. "IHS chief medical officers in each region are responsible for ensuring that comprehensive care is provided at each hospital, health station, clinic and facility that IHS operates."

Dr. Lawrence most recently worked as a physician evaluator with CenseoHealth in Wisconsin where, as an independent contractor, he worked in case management identifying health risks and gaps in care. Prior to that, Dr. Lawrence worked as an emergency physician with Infinity Healthcare, Inc. and Falls Medical Group, both in Wisconsin.

Dr. Lawrence received his bachelor's degree from the University of Wisconsin Madison and his medical degree from The Medical College of Wisconsin.

The IHS Great Plains Area serves 130,000 patients in Iowa, Nebraska, South Dakota and North Dakota by operating 15 federal government facilities and funding the operations of 18 tribally operated health facilities.

This follows an announcement made in May of this year, when IHS announced other new hires at a facility in the Great Plains Area.

The IHS, an agency in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, provides a comprehensive health service delivery system for approximately 2.2 million American Indians and Alaska Natives.