OLEAN — Upper Allegheny Health System announced the appointment of Dr. Sarmad Baloch as the new medical director of the hospitalist program at Olean General Hospital.
Baloch received his medical degree from Liaquat University of Medical and Health Sciences in Pakistan. He completed his residency at the University at Buffalo, where he was appointed chief resident physician and was also inducted into the Gold Humanism Honor Society. This honor was in recognition of his exemplary compassionate patient care throughout his residency.
Baloch was also a participant in the UB residency program with the majority of the three-year training program being in Olean. He was a 2020 graduate of the UB residency program and is also American Board certified in family medicine.
“I’ve been in the Olean community since 2018, so I’m very familiar with the healthcare needs of this region,” he said. “OGH has been a great place to become a part of some of the exceptional turnaround work. The team has been very aggressive in implementing improvements throughout the system as well as improving quality and patient satisfaction.”
One improvement was transitioning the hospitalists program, which was contracted by a third party, under the direct management of OGH. A hospitalist is a physician who provides care to inpatients at the hospital.
The transition of management occurred in September 2022. Officials with Upper Allegheny Health System, which operates OGH and Bradford Regional Medical Center, said this has helped with improvement in communication among the hospitalist physicians and other medical staff. This initiative was a part of enhancing the patient experience and quality of care for OGH inpatients through better control on documentation and standards of care.
“UAHS has had tremendous success recruiting quality providers and clinical leaders,” said Dr. P. Henri Lamothe, chief medical officer of Upper Allegheny. “Dr. Baloch will be an asset as we continue to improve the quality of care for our patients. I’m confident that under Dr. Baloch’s leadership, the hospitalist program will achieve our vision of being five-stars.”
Outside of work, Baloch enjoys traveling and exploring new places.
“I’ve been at OGH since 2021, and I am so pleased to see the positive changes the organization has made over the past few years,” he said. “We’ve seen great results on the recruitment of physicians, an initiative I will be working on for the hospitalist program.”