Biography

Samantha Simmons, MPH is an accomplished leader in the field of integrative medicine with an extensive background in many facets of driving transformation in healthcare through collaborative initiatives and strategic partnerships. Ms. Simmons is the CEO of the Academic Consortium for Integrative Medicine & Health, an organization comprised of national and international prestigious academic medical centers and health systems, representing thousands of researchers, educators, and clinicians dedicated to whole health and health equity. She is passionate about health policy advocacy and driving utilization of models of whole person care for underserved populations through innovative initiatives and partnerships and created the Whole Health in the States Initiative (WHITS) as a vehicle for these goals. Ms. Simmons advocates for how a diverse array of health care providers can and should be at the forefront of transforming health care in order to better serve population health.

Prior to joining the Academic Consortium, Ms. Simmons was President of the Oregon Collaborative for Integrative Medicine from 2008-2021 and worked in pediatric and integrative medicine research and administration at Oregon Health & Science University from 2006-2019. Ms. Simmons received her Bachelor of Science and Master of Public Health degrees from Portland State University and has dedicated her entire career to removing barriers to healthcare that is interprofessional and focused on a person's whole health and wellbeing. Her strategies towards these ends center around health policy advocacy and education, program development, interprofessional and inter-institutional collaboration, strategic initiatives, and outreach. In addition to serving as a member of the SCU Board of Regents, Ms. Simmons serves on numerous committees, boards, and workgroups in partnership with organizations working towards the goal of healthcare that looks like health and not just the absence of illness and disease.