There are still a lot of unknowns about Brigham Young University’s plans to open a medical school. But no longer among those is who will lead it.
On Thursday, the private religious university announced that Dr. Mark Ott — a renowned surgeon who studied at the University of Utah and has spent most of his career at Intermountain Health — will be the inaugural dean for the much-anticipated program.
“Dr. Ott is a widely respected doctor, surgeon and leader who has worked and studied at the most highly regarded healthcare institutions in the world,” said BYU President Shane Reese in a statement. “More importantly, Dr. Ott has a deep commitment to BYU’s spiritual mission and has lived a life of service and quiet devotion to the true master healer, Jesus Christ.”
Brigham Young University is the academic arm of and sponsored by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Leaders of the Utah-based faith initially announced the plans for a medical school in late July.
At that time, the church’s governing First Presidency did not provide any specific dates or timeline for the school’s opening. But they said the focus would be on “international health issues affecting members,” as well as “the church’s worldwide humanitarian efforts.”
Since then, Reese has also confirmed that the school will be located on BYU’s Provo campus and that it will offer doctor of medicine degrees (MDs), rather than degrees in osteopathic medicine (DOs). The school will not include an associated hospital, like the University of Utah’s medical student program.
The LDS Church was previously involved in running hospitals, but sold those in 1975 to Intermountain Health. Ott has worked at what was then renamed Intermountain LDS Hospital.
His appointment was approved by BYU’s Board of Trustees, which includes the First Presidency and other faith leaders. In a statement, Ott called it “a humbling and exciting honor” to serve as dean.
“BYU’s medical school will provide students with a topflight medical education as well as an enduring appreciation that their talents and training are gifts from God for the benefit of the world,” he added.
Ott received his medical degree from the University of Utah in 1989. Then he trained in general surgery at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and Hospital, where he also completed a fellowship.
He specializes in surgical oncology — removing tumors from the pancreas, liver and gallbladder, as well as cutting out other complex and rare cancers. He has also worked to lower the costs of surgeries and to improve the outcomes for patients throughout his career.
(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) The Brigham Young University campus is pictured in Provo on Saturday, Feb. 10, 2024. The university's planned medical school will be located on BYU’s Provo campus.
Ott’s first faculty position was at Harvard School of Medicine; he has also been an adjunct professor of surgery at the U. — where he received an award for being the surgery department’s faculty teacher of the year — and a clinical professor at Stanford University.
He has held several titles during his time at Intermountain Health, most recently serving as medical director for Intermountain Medical Center — the system’s flagship hospital — through the COVID-19 pandemic. He received the organization’s Lifetime Achievement Award for extraordinary service to medicine prior to that, in 2014.
Both Intermountain Health and the U. have indicated their intentions to partner with BYU’s new medical school when it comes online. A spokesperson for Intermountain Health did not respond to a request for comment Thursday about Ott’s new position.
There are currently three medical schools in the state. The largest is the expanding Spencer Fox Eccles School of Medicine at the University of Utah, which is a public program.
The other two are private: Noorda College of Osteopathic Medicine in Provo, and a branch of Rocky Vista University College of Osteopathic Medicine near St. George.
