John Tooker, MD, MBA, FACP, deputy executive vice president and chief operating officer of the American College of Physicians-American Society of Internal Medicine (ACP-ASIM), has been appointed executive vice president and chief executive officer of the organization. He will assume the position of EVP and CEO on July 1, 2002.

ACP-ASIM is the nation's largest medical specialty society. Its membership comprises more than 115,000 internal medicine physicians and medical students. Internists are specialists in the prevention, detection and treatment of illnesses that primarily affect adults.

As EVP and CEO, Tooker will be responsible for administration of the College's activities in medical education, membership services, publications, marketing and communications, and public policy.

A seasoned administrator, Tooker has served as deputy executive vice president and chief operating officer of ACP-ASIM since 1995, and has been an active member and leader of ACP-ASIM for years. As deputy executive vice president and chief operating officer, he was responsible for staff and fiscal administration during a period of significant change, which included the merger between ACP and ASIM in 1998. A Fellow of the College, he served as ACP-ASIM Governor for Maine and then as chair of the organization's Board of Governors, a 76-member body of regional representatives that advises the ACP-ASIM Board of Regents. He has also served as a member of the Board of Regents.

A board-certified internist and pulmonologist, Tooker is adjunct professor at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, where he practices part time. He is a Fellow of the American College of Chest Physicians, an alternate delegate to the American Medical Association, and is a member of the American College of Physician Executives, the American Thoracic Society and the American Society of Association Executives. At the local level, he is a member of the Pennsylvania Medical Society, the Philadelphia County Medical Society, and a Fellow of the College of Physicians of Philadelphia.

Tooker received his medical degree from Colorado University and completed an internship at Bellevue Hospital Center in New York. He was a resident in internal medicine at Bellevue Hospital Center in New York and at the University of Colorado Medical Center in Denver. He completed fellowships in pulmonary medicine at Maine Medical Center in Portland, Maine, and in pulmonary medicine research at the University of Washington in Seattle. He served as assistant chief, department of internal medicine and program director of the internal medicine residency program at the Maine Medical Center in Portland, Maine. Tooker received his MBA from the Fox School of Business of Temple University. He and his wife, Nancy, have two children.

The American College of Physicians-American Society of Internal Medicine (ACP-ASIM) is dedicated to the advancement of internal medicine so that its members can provide the best quality care for their patients. A nonprofit organization based in Philadelphia, it is the second-largest physician group in the United States. Its mission is to enhance the quality and effectiveness of health care by fostering excellence and professionalism in the practice of medicine.