Another OSU doctor leaving for WVU job

Another physician is leaving Ohio State University’s Wexner Medical Center to join West Virginia University’s growing medical system.

Dr. Carl Schmidt, a nationally recognized surgical oncologist, will join the West Virginia University Cancer Institute in July, the Morgantown-based university announced Tuesday. Schmidt is the most recent doctor or executive to leave Ohio State for WVU, where former Ohio State leader Gordon Gee is president.

Schmidt, who specializes in cancers of the liver, pancreas and stomach, will serve as chief of surgical oncology and surgeon in chief of WVU’s Cancer Institute.

He joined Ohio State’s faculty in 2008 and is an associate professor of surgery. He also has served as vice chairman of quality and patient safety and as program director for surgical oncology fellowships.

In WVU’s announcement, Schmidt explained what attracted him to the university.

“I feel there is a swelling of positive energy and forward direction at the WVU Cancer Center. When I met with the leadership, they were aligned on the same focus on people, most importantly the people from West Virginia who need the care. They are very aligned in their goals, and there is a togetherness in the leadership.”

Ohio State spokesman Chris Davey said in an email the university wished Schmidt well.

“Physicians who work at an institution as successful as the Wexner Medical Center are in high demand, and it’s not surprising that they are actively recruited by other institutions.”

The addition of Schmidt to WVU was praised by Richard Goldberg, who was physician in chief of the OSU James Cancer Hospital and the associate director of the Ohio State Comprehensive Cancer Center before he left Ohio State last year to become director of the WVU Cancer Institute.

“Dr. Schmidt is a gifted teacher who is committed to training practitioners at all levels,” Goldberg said. “I am looking forward to working with him again and doing good things.”

Others who have recently departed Ohio State for WVU are Dr. John Campo, former chairman of OSU’s department of psychiatry and behavioral health; his wife, Rhonda Campo, former associate executive director of the James Cancer Hospital; and Dr. Ali Rezai, former director of Ohio State’s Neurological Institute.