Veteran Physician and Educator Catherine Womack, MD, Takes Helm of Memphis Medical Society

Catherine Womack, MD, a College of Medicine alumna and longtime faculty member, brings decades of leadership experience in academic medicine to her new position as president of the Memphis Medical Society, an organization that plays a key role in shaping health care across the city.

Memphis is home to a thriving medical community, and Catherine Womack, MD, has spent her career at its center. An alumna of the University of Tennessee Health Science Center and a College of Medicine faculty member for more than 25 years, Dr. Womack now steps into a new role at the forefront of organized medicine as president of the Memphis Medical Society.

Dr. Womack, the College of Medicine's associate dean of Student Affairs and Admissions, brings decades of experience in clinical care, academic medicine, and physician leadership to the position. Her election underscores the role UT Health Sciences faculty and alumni play in advancing health care in Memphis and beyond.

"The University of Tennessee Health Science Center is a big force for change in our city," said Dr. Womack, a native Memphian who has dedicated her career to practicing and teaching in the city. "We have so many wonderful members of UT Health Sciences who are also members of the Medical Society, and working together, we can really affect change."

The Memphis Medical Society, which celebrates its 150^th anniversary this year, represents physicians across specialties and serves as an advocate for physicians, trainees, and patients. Members have access to resources, networking opportunities, and professional development programs focused on advocacy, mentorship, education, and community building.

Dr. Womack's path to leadership in the society began through her clinical work. "I was approached when I was working with my practice plan about serving with the Medical Society," she said. "When I joined the society and met the leadership, I was just so impressed with all the things they were trying to do for our community."

When asked to join the society's board, Dr. Womack said she was "thrilled," particularly by opportunities to engage the next generation of physicians in organized medicine. "I love bringing the medical students into the Medical Society, and having residents come to learn about organized medicine and to think about what we can do as physicians to promote the health of our patients and even the health of other physicians," she said.

Michael Hocker, MD, executive dean of the College of Medicine, said Dr. Womack's election as Medical Society president reflects the reputation she has built over her career. "Catherine has been a steady, impactful leader in our community, dedicated to serving patients, mentoring future physicians, and strengthening the fabric of organized medicine in Memphis," he said. "Her election as president of the Memphis Medical Society speaks to the respect she has earned from her peers and the trust placed in her vision for the society and our profession."

Dr. Catherine Womack speaks at the College of Medicine's Match Day celebration in 2023. Dr. Womack joined the UT Health Sciences faculty in 1998 and has served as associate dean of Student Affairs and Admissions since 2019.

Dr. Womack said she is humbled and honored to be selected as president in part because of her respect for the organization's past leaders. That includes the 2025 president, James H. Beaty, MD, who is the former Harold Boyd Chair of the UT Health Science Center-Campbell Clinic Department of Orthopaedic Surgery and Biomedical Engineering, a UT Health Sciences alumnus, and a longtime leader in orthopedic care.

"Life goes full circle, because I remember when I first had my children, Dr. Beaty saw both of them as a pediatric orthopedic doctor," Dr. Womack said. "To follow in his footsteps as the president of the Memphis Medical Society is a true honor."

At UT Health Sciences, Dr. Womack's career has spanned education, clinical care, research, and administration. Since joining the College of Medicine as an instructor in 1998, she has served in several leadership positions including associate dean, division chief, residency program director, and principal investigator for various research studies and clinical trials.

"I have had a lot of different leadership roles at the university, and the university has always supported me as an individual and supported my success. So, I am very proud of my roots at UT Health Sciences," she said.

"When you get lots of physicians working together, you can really make change occur."

Dr. Catherine Womack

Dr. Womack also credits her mentors at the university, including James B. Lewis Jr., MD, Laura Sprabery, MD, Karen Johnson, MD, and former Chancellor Steve Schwab, MD, for helping to shape her approach to leadership. "I am really thankful that I can emulate them in some way," she said. "They were giants in their fields. They led the research, they led the clinical efforts in the city, and they've taught the students and residents for the whole state."

As Medical Society president, Dr. Womack hopes to increase awareness of the organization's work and expand physician engagement. "I want to make sure that the physicians in our city realize all the wonderful things that the Memphis Medical Society does and to make sure that we can increase our numbers so that we can continue to do more," she said. "When you get lots of physicians working together, you can really make change occur."

She also plans to focus on strengthening trust between patients and their physicians. "What we know about patients is that when they develop a relationship with their doctor and they get good information, then they make better decisions and informed decisions. I hope that we can work on that together this coming year," Dr. Womack said.

Dr. Womack sees her presidency as a reflection of the close partnership between UT Health Sciences and community physicians, many of whom work side by side in clinics, hospitals, and professional organizations. She hopes her leadership will help elevate public understanding of both the Memphis Medical Society and the broad impact of UT Health Sciences.

"We do amazing work here, and people should know that their doctor is one of our faculty, or their nurse, their pharmacist, their physical or occupational therapist," she said. "UT is an integral part of my life and really the community in Memphis. We wouldn't be the community of physicians that we are today without the University of Tennessee Health Science Center, and we're very fortunate that many of the people that we work with in the city are UT-trained or faculty physicians. It's just a great place to be."