This interview is part of a recurring series featuring ACGME volunteers.
Mark Swofford, PhD, FACHE is Chief Executive Officer at Optum Serve Health Services, part of Optum Serve. Optum Serve is the area of Optum/United Health Group that provides contract services to the federal government. He currently serves on the ACGME Review Committee for Thoracic Surgery as a public member.
ACGME: How did you learn about the ACGME and the opportunity to serve as a public member/ACGME volunteer?
Dr. Swofford: Another public member, Kyle Campbell, reached out to me and asked if I would be interested in volunteering with the ACGME. Kyle and I were colleagues in the Army and part of the executive team at Brooke Army Medical Center, a military academic medical center with 30+ graduate medical education [GME] programs. We are also both members of the American College of Healthcare Executives and have held volunteer leadership positions within that organization.
ACGME: Why did you decide to volunteer with the ACGME?
Swofford: To give back to the larger health care community. I’ve worked in health care my entire adult life, had the opportunity to work with GME programs at different facilities, and enjoy giving back to our health care system and trying to make it better for everyone.
ACGME: What did you know about the ACGME/GME before you became an ACGME volunteer, how has your understanding of the ACGME changed since, and how has your perspective on GME changed since you started volunteering?
Swofford: I knew what the ACGME was and the role it played in medical education, but really nothing else. I had worked in facilities with GME programs and understood some of the standards for accreditation, but was not aware of the process, how Review Committees worked, and the relationships to other professional and standard-setting institutions (such as the American Board of Surgery). Now having participated in the accreditation review process, it is very heartening to see how thoughtful and deliberate the process is and the level of engagement from the staff and committee members. Review Committee discussions are thorough and consider the full picture of each program. Standards are set and adjusted carefully with input from a wide range of stakeholders, and the ACGME leadership is very impressive in the way they navigate a complex environment.
ACGME: What would you want the public to know about the ACGME, the work of the Review/Recognition Committees, and how public members are involved and why it’s important?
Swofford: They should know that the ACGME as an institution is doing a phenomenal job accrediting GME programs throughout the US. There are well-qualified and dedicated people in all roles and at all levels of the organization, and they take their work seriously. Committees take their work seriously and consider all applicable standards and the complete performance of the programs they review. They ensure residents and fellows have a productive learning environment and hold faculty members and institutions accountable for producing qualified physicians who will serve patients well.
Public members are treated as full partners within the various committees and bring a non-physician perspective to the review of each program, which helps ensure all aspects of a program are considered in committee discussions.
ACGME: What would you say to someone on the fence about becoming a public member?
Swofford: If your schedule is flexible enough to make the committee meetings and do the preparatory work, then you should absolutely volunteer and say “yes” to becoming a public member. The work is rewarding and the ACGME and your individual committee value your role and input. You will learn a lot about GME and gain incredible insight into an important part of our health care system. Plus, you get to meet some amazing professionals.
ACGME: Can you share a little bit about your background, personally, and anything else you’d like to share about who you are?
Swofford: My wife and I live in Winston-Salem, North Carolina and have three children (all college graduates now) who are intermittently around the house. We both went to Davidson College, and I was a career Army Medical Service Corps officer who provided health care services to soldiers and their families from the battlefield to academic medical centers. Originally from North Wilkesboro, a small town in rural western North Carolina, access to health care in rural communities and underserved populations is a personal and professional interest that I incorporate into my professional work.
Learn more about the ACGME’s Council of Public Members, including how to indicate interest in volunteering.