MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – Albert L. Wright, Jr., president and CEO of the West Virginia University (WVU) Health System, recently announced the appointment of Leslie Lawson, M.B.A., F.A.C.H.E., as vice president of operations for WVU Medicine Thomas Health System. Lawson will start her new role at Thomas Health System late June.  

“Leslie is a highly skilled and accomplished healthcare executive who’s done a great job helping lead some of our most critical specialty services at our flagship hospital in Morgantown,” Wright said. “Her high energy, great leadership, and unique combination of experiences in hospital and clinic operations, as well as finance and hospital reimbursement, made her the ideal person for this job.”

Lawson’s appointment comes as Thomas Health System begins its new relationship with the WVU Health System under a management agreement the two organizations announced last month. She now serves as the assistant vice president of the WVU Heart and Vascular Institute based in Morgantown and previously served as the administrator of the Institute and the administrative director of the WVU Medicine Stroke and Spine Centers. 

Earlier in her healthcare career, she held leadership positions in revenue cycle and payor reimbursement and started with the WVU Health System more than 20 years ago. She is a Fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives and earned her M.B.A. from Waynesburg University and undergraduate degree in finance from Kansas State University. 

“I’m excited to join the Thomas Health System team as they begin their transition and affiliation with the WVU Health System,” Lawson said. “I look forward to working closely with everyone there and to help them continue building a truly great organization for the communities they serve.”