Kohl to lead TransforMED Centers of Excellence

Dr. Russell Kohl has joined Leawood, Kan.-based TransforMED this week as its new medical director for innovation.

Kohl, whose age was not immediately available, will lead the Centers of Excellence for the not-for-profit subsidiary of the American Academy of Family Physicians. The center exists to study and analyze the components of a successful medical-home practice. TransforMED consultants then guide primary-care physicians in the redesign of their practices to implement a patient-centered medical-home model.

“I am excited to continue our exploration and dissemination of the ideas and models that will revolutionize healthcare in the United States to give better, more cost-effective care to our patients and higher personal and professional satisfaction to the physicians and staff who provide that care,” Kohl said in a release.

Kohl was most recently on the faculty of the University of Oklahoma at Tulsa's School of Community Medicine and the University of Oklahoma College of Medicine. He has also owned his own family practice, directed the implementation of a hospital electronic medical-record system and other health IT systems. He also served in Iraq and Afghanistan as a lieutenant colonel and senior flight surgeon with Oklahoma Air National Guard.

“Dr. Kohl brings a tremendous wealth of knowledge with him in support of our organization,” Dan McKean, COO of TransforMED, said in the release. “What stands out most is his dedication to our country and communities, his love of family medicine, and his willingness to collaborate and share with others.”