Irene Thompson

Irene Thompson fosters engagement among peers from academic medical centers (AMCs) to support the collective goal of delivering world-class patient care in the most effective, efficient manner. As vice chair of the Vizient University HealthSystem Consortium Board of Managers and executive advisor to Vizient’s chief executive officer, Byron Jobe, Thompson works with AMC CEOs and other industry leaders.

The Board of Managers includes 23 executives who represent AMC member organizations and provides perspective and recommendations for solutions, programs, educational resources and networking opportunities that advance the tripartite mission of academic medicine: research, education and patient care. The network facilitates knowledge exchange, discovery and collaboration among discipline-specific and topic-focused groups.

As president and CEO of University HealthSystem Consortium, Thompson was instrumental in the decision to merge with VHA, Inc. in April 2015. Prior to the merger and under her leadership, University HealthSystem Consortium’s membership grew significantly to 117 AMCs and almost 330 of their affiliated hospitals representing the majority of the nation's nonprofit AMCs.

Before joining University HealthSystem Consortium in 2007, Thompson served as president and CEO for the University of Kansas Hospital Authority. While there, she led significant improvement efforts in quality of care, patient satisfaction and revenue sources. Prior to that, she was chief financial officer for an AMC health system and audit partner at a major accounting firm specializing in the health care segment.

Thompson serves on the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) Council of Teaching Hospitals and Health Systems Administrative Board. Previously she served as chair of the AAMC Council of Teaching Hospitals and Health Systems Board of Directors, the Kansas City Kansas Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors, the American Heart Association (AHA) National Corporate Operations Committee of the Board of Directors and chair of the Nominating Committee, and the Corporate Operations Committee of the AHA Midwest Affiliate Board of Directors. She also served as a member of the Board of Directors of America’s Essential Hospitals. 

In 2007 and 2013, Thompson was named one of the Top 25 Women in Healthcare by Modern Healthcare magazine. She was honored in 2015 with the B'nai B’rith National Healthcare Award. She also is a member of several professional associations: The Economic Club of Chicago, the Chicago Council on Global Affairs, The Chicago Network, the Society for Health Service Administrators, and the Blue Ridge Academic Health Group.

Thompson earned a bachelor of science degree in business from State University of New York and has participated in organizational management master studies at the University of Pennsylvania.