Skip to content
Massachusetts Eye and Ear
/assets/MEE/images/mgb-default-thumb.png Press Release

April 18, 2019Press Release

New Chief Medical Officer Starts at Mass. Eye and Ear

Media Contact

Ryan Jaslow 

Program Director, External Communications - Research, Mass General Brigham
617-573-4385 | rjaslow@mgb.org

Aalok Agarwala, MDAalok Agarwala, MD, MBA, to spearhead strategies to grow healthcare quality and safety

Boston, Mass. — Aalok Agarwala, MD, MBA, has been appointed the new Chief Medical Officer of Massachusetts Eye and Ear following a nationwide search, and joined the senior leadership team April 1 in this new role.

As Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Agarwala will lead the Medical Staff Office at Mass. Eye and Ear, as well as the hospital’s efforts in quality, patient safety and patient experience. A renowned clinician and educator with prolific experience in improving quality and outcomes, Dr. Agarwala joins Mass. Eye and Ear from Massachusetts General Hospital, where he served as Chief of the Division of General Surgery Anesthesia and Associate Director for Quality and Safety. Dr. Agarwala treats patients as a staff anesthesiologist, and also serves on the faculty of Harvard Medical School as an Assistant Professor of Anesthesia.

“We are delighted that Dr. Agarwala will be taking on this important leadership role at Mass. Eye and Ear, bringing his vast experience in leading healthcare quality and patient safety initiatives to our institution,” said John Fernandez, President of Mass. Eye and Ear. “Dr. Agarwala’s addition as the Chief Medical Officer of Mass. Eye and Ear will benefit our patients and treatment outcomes for years to come.” 

An accomplished researcher, Dr. Agarwala has published numerous peer-reviewed journal articles on checklists and protocols implemented in health care settings to improve patient safety, efficiency, and quality of care.

“Massachusetts Eye and Ear is one of the leading specialty hospitals in the world for caring for patients with conditions affecting their eyes, ears, nose, and head and neck, and it is an honor to join the ranks of these skilled clinicians and collaborate on our mission to better the lives of our patients,” says Dr. Agarwala.

Originally from Diamond Bar, California, Dr. Agarwala earned his bachelor’s and medical degrees at the University of California at Los Angeles, in addition to an MBA. He received further training in Clinical Effectiveness at the Harvard School of Public Health; the Harvard Anesthesia Leadership Executive Program at the MIT Sloan School of Management; and the Physician Leadership Development Program at the Massachusetts General Physicians Organization/Harvard Business School.

Dr. Agarwala succeeds Sunil Eappen, MD, who was previously the Chief Medical Officer and Chief of Anesthesia at Mass. Eye and Ear, and is now the Chief Medical Officer at Brigham Health.

About Massachusetts Eye and Ear

Massachusetts Eye and Ear, founded in 1824, is an international center for treatment and research and a teaching hospital of Harvard Medical School. A member of Partners HealthCare, Mass. Eye and Ear specializes in ophthalmology (eye care) and otolaryngology–head and neck surgery (ear, nose and throat care). Mass. Eye and Ear clinicians provide care ranging from the routine to the very complex. Also home to the world's largest community of hearing and vision researchers, Mass. Eye and Ear scientists are driven by a mission to discover the basic biology underlying conditions affecting the eyes, ears, nose, throat, head and neck and to develop new treatments and cures. In the 2018-2019 "Best Hospitals Survey,"U.S. News & World Report ranked Mass. Eye and Ear #4 in the nation for eye care and #6 for ear, nose and throat care. For more information about life-changing care and research at Mass. Eye and Ear, please visit our blog, Focus, and follow us on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook.