Zweig Begins as School of Medicine Interim Dean

Update: As of April 1, 2020, Steven Zweig, MD, MSPH has been named dean at the University of Missouri School of Medicine. Additionally, Michael LeFevre, MD, MSPH has been named chair for Family and Community Medicine. His appointment begins May 1, 2020.

Steven Zweig, MD, MSPH, professor and chair of the Department of Family and Community Medicine, has been named interim dean at the University of Missouri School of Medicine.

Michael LeFevre, MD, MSPH, has been named interim chair for Family and Community Medicine. Both appointments are effective April 1, 2019.

“Building on the success of those who have come before me, I will do my best to advance the mission of the School of Medicine: to improve the health of all people, especially Missourians, through exemplary education, research and patient-centered care,” Zweig said. “We will do so with the work of the outstanding faculty, staff and students of the medical school; our vital partnership with MU Health Care; and the collaboration of our colleagues on the MU campus and beyond.”

Zweig is the former director of the MU Interdisciplinary Center on Aging, current president of the national Association of Departments of Family Medicine and has been the lead researcher on several grants, receiving more than $7 million in external funding from several sources, including the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the American Association of Medical Colleges and Pew Charitable Trusts.

In addition to his responsibilities as department chair, Zweig is a family physician with certifications in geriatric medicine and hospice and palliative medicine.

Zweig’s appointment followed the announcement that outgoing Dean Patrick Delafontaine had accepted a position at another institution. 

LeFevre teaches residents and medical students in inpatient and outpatient settings and maintains an active practice across the full breadth of family medicine, including inpatient work and — through 2012 — obstetrics. LeFevre was appointed vice chair of Family and Community Medicine in 2008.

“I am humbled to accept the responsibility and role of interim chair of MU Family and Community Medicine,” LeFevre said. “My commitment to this department began in 1979 when I was a Family Medicine resident. There is a sense of shared values, community and compassion that make Family Medicine a great place to learn, work and succeed. I consider it an honor and privilege to follow Steve as department chair and continue the important work he has done as I help lead our mission forward.” 

Much of LeFevre’s academic effort has been in the area of evidence-based medicine and clinical policies, and he completed more than a decade of work on the United States Preventive Services Task Force in April of 2016, including three years as co-vice chair and a year as chair. 

LeFevre served as chief medical information officer for MU Health Care and directed the implementation of the electronic medical record across the system from 2002 through 2012. Named medical director for population health in 2014, LeFevre is leading MU Health Care’s efforts to improve health for entire populations of Missourians, improve care for individuals within those populations and lower health care costs.