Americares Names New Senior Vice President and Chief Program Officer

Stamford, Conn. –Sept. 8, 2020 – Americares has welcomed M. Rashad Massoud, MD, MPH, FACP, as its new senior vice president and chief program officer.

In his new role, Dr. Massoud oversees the organization’s health programs worldwide for people affected by poverty or disaster, including its work with the uninsured in the United States, its Emergency Response team and its global distribution of more than $900 million in medicine and supplies to more than 90 countries annually. He also leads Americares response to the COVID-19 pandemic in 20 countries, including distribution of personal protective equipment, delivery of essential primary health care services, and training and mental health support for frontline health workers. He oversees a team of more than 470 working in 10 countries.

“Dr. Massoud’s proven track record as a medical doctor and global health expert will be an invaluable asset to Americares as we work to increase access to quality health services around the world,” said Americares President and CEO Christine Squires. “He has strong leadership skills, a clear vision, expansive global health knowledge and infectious energy and enthusiasm.”

Dr. Massoud brings to the role over 20 years of experience directing initiatives that have strengthened health systems in vulnerable communities around the world. Prior to joining Americares, Dr. Massoud served as chief medical and quality officer and senior vice president of the Quality and Performance Institute at University Research Co., where he led URC’s quality improvement efforts in over 40 countries, applying improvement science to deliver positive outcomes in global health priority areas. He also served as director of the USAID Applying Science to Strengthen and Improve Systems Project.

Prior to that, he served as senior vice president at the Institute for Healthcare Improvement in Cambridge, Mass., where he worked on innovation, transformation and large-scale programming. He also served as a medical officer with the United Nations Relief and Works Agency, and has consulted for and collaborated with KPMG, UNICEF, the World Bank, the World Health Organization and several other nonprofit organizations.

“I am very excited to be joining Americares, a mission-driven organization focused on saving lives and improving health for people affected by poverty or disaster,” said Dr. Massoud.

“For me, it is an opportunity to apply decades of experience in global health to achieving quality emergency response, leading to systems strengthening and sustainability.”

Americares helps communities prepare for, respond to and recover from disasters; increase access to critical medicine and medical supplies; improve and expand clinical services; and prevent disease and promote good health. Americares carries out health programs in over 20 countries and maintains offices in Colombia, El Salvador, Haiti, India, Liberia, Malawi, the Philippines, Tanzania and the United States, including Puerto Rico.

A leader in the global health field, Dr. Massoud is the immediate past president and executive committee member of the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health Alumni Association and served as an advisory board member for the World Health Organization global report on quality and safety. He is also an inaugural member of the International Academy of Quality and Safety.

Dr. Massoud earned his medical degree from the First Moscow State Medical University in Moscow, Russia, and completed a master’s in public health from Harvard University’s T.H. Chan School of Public Health.

Dr. Massoud lives in Bethesda, Md., with his wife and two children.