Texas-Style Farewell Celebration Honors Shlomit Schaal, MD, PhD,

Colleagues and friends of Shlomit Schaal, MD, PhD, MHCM, gathered together Texas-style at the Beechwood Hotel Monday, February 13 to bid farewell and celebrate her tenure as Chair of the Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, and President of UMass Memorial Medical Group. Guests wearing her favorite color orange and donning cowboy hats and boots were scattered around the room. And in true Texas fashion, partygoers were treated to some good ole southern line dancing.

Dr. Schaal is headed to Houston Methodist in Texas to serve as Executive Vice President and Chief Physician Executive at Houston Methodist and President and Chief Executive Officer of the Houston Methodist Physician Organization.  It’s clear she will be greatly missed, not only for her legacy and many accomplishments, but also for the enthusiasm she brought to work every day. One of her key mantras as a leader is to “dream big and believe” and that she did during her tenure at UMass Memorial and UMass Chan.

Eric Dickson, MD, President and CEO of UMass Memorial Health, Terence Flotte, MD, Dean, UMass Chan Medical School, her staff/faculty, residents, and friends all shared stories about Dr. Schaal. Remarks included references to her many accomplishments since arriving here seven years ago, including the Eye Team being named Innovators of the Year multiple times, the creation of the Ophthalmology Residency Program, the opening of the new Northborough Crossing Eye Center, and being named the Best of Central Massachusetts for eye care. While reinventing the Ophthalmology Department from the ground up was met with many obstacles, Dr. Schaal overcame all with her leadership. 

“The role of a leader is to serve others – to add value to others lives and give them opportunities to grow,” Dr. Schaal said of her approach to leading. “And going forward: please help as many roses as you can to open their hearts and give the world their beauty! If we all could just do this – our world will become a much more beautiful place,” she finished.

We wish you the best Dr. Schaal!