Executive Vice President, Chief Clinical Officer
Suja Mathew, MD is Executive Vice President and Chief Clinical Officer of Atlantic Health System. In her role, Dr. Mathew oversees the quality, research, education and health equity missions of the Atlantic Health organization. With many years of experience in clinical leadership, Dr. Mathew works collaboratively to deliver innovative and high-quality care for patients across the state.
Working directly with Atlantic Health System’s chief medical officers and quality, research and academic teams, Dr. Mathew helps strengthen the bonds that connect Atlantic Health System’s entire network of care, empowering every patient to benefit from its system-wide resources. In her unique role as Chief Clinical Officer, Dr. Mathew is primarily focused on three key areas: optimizing patient access to the full Atlantic Health System network of care, elevating the system’s innovative research and academic programs, and continuing the system’s commitment to the highest quality care.
Under her leadership at Atlantic Health, the system has earned numerous, national recognitions for quality care. Most recently Atlantic Health was honored with a 2023 Citation of Merit from the American Hospital Association as part of its prestigious Quest for Quality prize.
Dr. Mathew is a leader and sought-after speaker on policy matters involving physicians thanks to several roles she plays with national organizations. She serves on the Board of Regents for the American College of Physicians (ACP), the largest specialty-based physician society in the country and is immediate past governor for the Illinois Northern chapter. She is a delegate to the American Medical Association (AMA) and an elected member of the AMA’s Council on Medical Education and chair of the Continuing Medical Education committee. Additionally, Dr. Mathew works with the AMA as a Senior Practice Advisor and assists leaders in their efforts to improve professional satisfaction among their clinicians.
Before joining Atlantic Health System in March 2022, Dr. Mathew served in the Cook County Health and Hospitals System in Chicago, Illinois for 22 years, most recently as the System Chair of Medicine. She oversaw integrated inpatient and ambulatory internal medicine, dermatology and neurology services across the entire system. Dr. Mathew distinguished herself as a medical educator when she served as program director at Stroger Hospital of Cook County, leading one of the nation’s largest internal medicine training programs and in progressive educational leadership roles at Rush Medical College.
Dr. Mathew earned her medical degree from the Pritzker School of Medicine at The University of Chicago and was elected to the Alpha Omega Alpha national medical honors society. She completed residency training in internal medicine at the University of Chicago Medical Center.
Dr. Mathew is passionate for health equity and addressing the needs of marginalized communities. She is an advocate for ensuring that all Americans have access to reliable sources of nutritious food and serves as co-chair of Doctors for a Hunger Free America since 2019. Dr. Mathew is also committed to mentoring the next generation of healthcare leaders through her co-founding of the South Asian Women’s Healthcare Collaborative, a group that aims to mentor and sponsor women of South Asian heritage who aspire to the highest leadership roles in U.S. healthcare. She is an awarded teacher, mentor, and humanitarian.