Northwell Appoints Dr. Sanjay Saint to Lead Internal Medicine

Dr. Saint will oversee Internal Medicine systemwide as well as chair the Department of Medicine at Long Island Jewish Medical Center and North Shore University Hospital

NEW HYDE PARK, N.Y.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Northwell Health has appointed renowned patient safety expert Sanjay Saint, MD, MPH, as senior vice president of the health system’s Internal Medicine service line – with direct oversight at two hospitals – while also playing a key academic role. Dr. Saint will serve as chair of the Department of Medicine at Long Island Jewish (LIJ) Medical Center in New Hyde Park, North Shore University Hospital (NSUH) in Manhasset and the Donald and Barbara Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell in Hempstead, where he will be appointed the endowed David J. Greene Professor of Medicine.

Dr. Saint was previously vice chair of internal medicine at the University of Michigan Health System, chief of medicine at the VA Ann Arbor Healthcare System and taught at the University of Michigan, where he spent nearly 25 years as a tenured professor in the Department of Internal Medicine. He worked at both the Michigan and VA health systems since 1998.

At Northwell, the largest nonprofit academic health system in the Northeast, Dr. Saint will work to ensure patient access, quality of care and safety. He hopes to build upon the lessons learned while working for the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), which is one of the largest integrated health systems in the world, and the University of Michigan. Dr. Saint succeeds Joseph Conigliaro, MD, MPH, and JoAnne Gottridge, MD, who remain at Northwell.

“Dr. Sanjay Saint is an exceptionally experienced clinical leader who brings the mind of a researcher along with the compassion of someone who has immersed himself in the care of America’s veterans, a combination that will only help drive the best clinical outcomes at Northwell Health,” said John D’Angelo, MD, Northwell’s president and CEO – and himself a veteran physician. “Dr. Saint is an internationally known patient safety expert and lecturer with extensive academic contributions. We’re excited for his next chapter at Northwell and to see his impact on an already robust health system.”

Dr. Saint has been a visiting professor at more than 100 institutions across the United States, Europe and Asia, authoring more than 400 peer-reviewed papers and several books on clinical medicine, mentorship and patient safety. He is a special correspondent to the New England Journal of Medicine and serves on the editorial boards of seven peer-reviewed journals, including NEJM Catalyst and BMJ Quality & Safety. His thought leadership also extends to national publications, including The Wall Street Journal and Harvard Business Review.

“The VA built a culture of mission-driven people with everyone focused on what really counts: ensuring those who served receive the superb health care that they deserve,” said Dr. Saint. “I have always been energized by learning, committed to innovation and inspired by the opportunity to teach and mentor the next generation of health care professionals. I am particularly excited to join Northwell Health – an organization whose collaborative, mission-driven culture and extraordinary scale and scope create a distinctive platform for advancing clinical excellence, education, innovation and community service. As I begin this next chapter, I am eager to contribute to Northwell’s mission and continued success while learning alongside its exceptional leaders and colleagues.”

Dr. Saint earned dual bachelor’s degrees in Biology and Political Science from the University of California, Irvine; Doctor of Medicine from the UCLA School of Medicine and a Master of Public Health degree as a Robert Wood Johnson Clinical Scholar from the University of Washington. He completed an internal medicine residency and chief residency at University of California, San Francisco.

“Dr. Sanjay Saint’s reputation as both a clinician and academic makes him an incredible addition to the culture of learning we foster at Northwell,” said David Battinelli, MD, Northwell’s physician-in-chief and Deborah and Lawrence Smith Dean at the Zucker School of Medicine. “We welcome his deep knowledge base and intellectual curiosity to the Zucker School of Medicine.”

A CMS 5-star, Magnet-recognized institution which treats more than 90,000 patients each year, North Shore University Hospital is home to the Sandra Atlas Bass Heart Hospital, the Katz Women’s Hospital, Northwell Transplant Institute, neurosurgery and is one of the busiest emergency departments in the region. It was nationally ranked by U.S. News in 10 adult specialties for the second straight year. Long Island Jewish Medical Center, a Magnet-recognized hospital which treats more than 80,000 patients each year, is home to the R.J. Zuckerberg Cancer Hospital, the Katz Women’s Hospital and one of New York City’s top emergency departments. LIJ has seven clinical specialties ranked in the top 50 nationally by U.S. News.

Northwell is powered by a workforce of 107,000 at 28 hospitals, more than 1,050 ambulatory care and 74 urgent care locations while tapping into the world-class expertise of the Feinstein Institutes for Medical Research, Donald and Barbara Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell and the Hofstra Northwell School of Nursing and Physician Assistant Studies. The health system was recently recognized as one of America’s Greatest Workplaces by Newsweek, the World’s Most Ethical Companies® by Ethisphere earlier this year. Northwell has also been named an Age-Friendly Employer, one of Fortune’s Best Workplaces in Healthcare, Modern Healthcare’s Best Places to Work, a TIME 100 Most Influential Companies 2025 and Springbuk’s Healthiest 100 Places to Work in America.

About Northwell Health
Northwell is the largest not-for-profit health system in the Northeast, serving residents of New York and Connecticut with 28 hospitals, more than 1,000 outpatient facilities, 22,000 nurses and over 20,000 physicians. Northwell cares for more than three million people annually in the New York metro area, including Long Island, the Hudson Valley, western Connecticut and beyond, thanks to philanthropic support from our communities. Northwell is New York State’s largest private employer with over 107,000 employees – including members of Northwell Health Physician Partners and Nuvance Health Medical Practices – who are working to change health care for the better. Northwell, named a TIME100 Most Influential Companies 2025, is making breakthroughs in medicine at the Feinstein Institutes for Medical Research. Northwell is training the next generation of medical professionals at the visionary Donald and Barbara Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell and the Hofstra Northwell School of Nursing and Physician Assistant Studies. For information on our more than 100 medical specialties, visit Northwell.edu and follow us @NorthwellHealth on Facebook, X, Instagram and LinkedIn.