Sarah Boutwell, MD, MSPH, to Serve as Interim Director of the Division of General Internal Medicine

Photo, Sarah Boutwell, MD

ANNOUNCEMENT — The GW Medical Faculty Associates’ Department of Medicine is pleased to announce that Sarah Boutwell, MD, MSPH, has been tapped to serve as the interim director of the Division of General Internal Medicine (DGIM). Boutwell is currently an assistant professor of medicine and primary care physician in DGIM and co-director of the Practice of Medicine (POM) course for our medical students. She began serving as the interim director on Jan. 8, 2024.



“I am thrilled that Dr. Boutwell has taken on this important role. The combination of her clinical, operational, and educational leadership makes her a perfect fit to lead DGIM in this interim period,” said William Borden, MD, interim chair of the Department of Medicine.



Boutwell earned her undergraduate degree from the University of Chicago, followed by her medical degree and an MSPH in health policy at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. She went on to Saint Louis University for her Internal Medicine Residency, and then practiced for several years both in St. Louis and Northern Virginia, providing her with strong clinical and clinical operational experience.



Since joining GW, Boutwell has had progressively increasing educational leadership roles, from leading the Clinical Apprenticeship Program (CAP) to her current role with the Practice of Medicine (POM) course. 

The appointment of Boutwell as interim director will follow the transition of Jillian Catalanotti, MD, MPH, professor of medicine and of health policy and management, to her new role as the Associate Dean for Clinical Public Health and Population Health Practice. Catalanotti will continue within the Department of Medicine as vice-chair for academic affairs and a practicing internist.



“Dr. Catalanotti has been a wonderful leader of DGIM with great skill, commitment and vision. I wish Dr. Catalanotti the very best in her new role and look forward to continuing to work with her in her Department of Medicine roles,” said Borden.



A permanent director of DGIM will be appointed by the permanent Chair of Medicine. The recruitment of the Chair of Medicine is currently underway.

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