The George Washington University (GW) School of Medicine and Health Sciences (SMHS) and the GW Medical Faculty Associates (GW MFA) are pleased to announce that Jocelyn Rapelyea, MD, RESD ’00, will serve as the chair of the GW Department of Radiology. She has served as interim chair since March 2025. In this role, Rapelyea will continue to provide leadership for the department’s faculty, learners, and staff, and deliver on the missions of clinical care, education, and research.
“I am pleased that Dr. Rapelyea will serve as the chair of the Department of Radiology. She has been an inspiring leader, strategist, and mentor in the department for many years, and her leadership over the past several months has provided stability and guidance for her faculty colleagues. Her experience as an internationally recognized leader in breast imaging, coupled with her director roles in graduate medical education, and as a clinical investigator and innovator in her discipline, have been foundational to her ability to lead. She understands the imperative of clinical excellence to enable the success of our faculty in their service as physicians, educators, and investigators here at GW,” said Barbara Lee Bass, MD, FACS, vice president for health affairs, dean of GW SMHS, Walter A. Bloedorn Chair of Administrative Medicine, and professor of Surgery.
Rapelyea received her Bachelor of Science in Biology from Bucknell University and earned an MD at Rutgers New Jersey Medical School. She then joined the GW radiology residency program in 1996, followed by completion of the GW breast imaging fellowship. She was recruited to the GW SMHS faculty when she finished her training and has practiced at the GW MFA since that time, rising to the rank of Professor of Radiology in 2017.
A committed educator, Rapelyea has served as past program director of the radiology residency and currently serves as the co-coordinator of resident education in breast imaging. She also serves as the associate director of Breast Imaging and Intervention at the GW Breast Center. A highly respected clinician, educator, and clinical investigator, Rapelyea has made many substantive contributions to the academic GW missions over the last 23 years.
As a widely published author in high impact scientific journals, Rapelyea’s scholarship focuses on breast imaging technologies for breast cancer detection. She has studied Breast-Specific Gamma Imaging to evaluate effectiveness for detection of ductal carcinoma in situ and invasive breast cancers; Automated Breast Ultrasound combined with full-field digital mammography to improve cancer detection in women with dense breast tissue; and Computer-Aided Detection Systems, to improve diagnostic accuracy and detection rates of breast cancer.
“I am pleased to be leading such an important department with incredible faculty. Partnering with fellow faculty members and staff over the last several months we have worked to reimagine and create a new vision for our department where we will continue to offer our patients the most advanced care has been my honor. I remain dedicated to the education of future physicians and support advanced scientific discovery to advance medicine – to be delivered to our patients,” said Rapelyea.
As the chair of the department, Rapelyea will lead the department’s educational, research, and clinical care missions, including the clinical practice sites across the Washington, D.C., region, the GW Hospital, the Cedar Hill Regional Medical Center – GW Health, and the educational and research programs of GW SMHS. She also will work to develop and enhance GW’s analytics resources with a focus on leveraging population health data for clinical purposes.
Partnering with leadership within the clinical arm of GW’s academic medical enterprise, Rapelyea will ensure that the Department of Radiology delivers high-quality care and achieves program objectives including integrated service delivery. She will oversee faculty development and mentoring toward academic advancement through research and scholarship, while fostering a robust culture to deliver educational excellence.
“Dr. Rapelyea brings exceptional clinical expertise and leadership to the role of Chair of the Department of Radiology,” said Bill Elliott, CEO of the GW MFA. “Her patient-centered approach and collaborative style will help drive continued growth and excellence across the department and the broader organization.”
Rapelyea began serving as the chair of the Department of Radiology on Nov. 1, 2025.
