Leadership at the KU Medical School in Salina will soon change. William Cathcart-Rake, M.D is retiring and a new dean has been named.

According to KU, the University of Kansas Medical Center has named Robert P. Moser, M.D., dean of the University of Kansas School of Medicine–Salina, effective May 1. He will replace William Cathcart-Rake, M.D., who will retire from his role as dean in June.

“Dr. Moser is a lifelong Jayhawk, and his career has been devoted to improving the health of Kansans,” said Robert D. Simari, M.D., executive vice chancellor of the University of Kansas Medical Center and executive dean of the KU School of Medicine. “With his wealth of knowledge and experience in primary care, Dr. Moser is well-positioned to carry forward the positive trajectory Dr. Cathcart-Rake has set into motion at the KU School of Medicine–Salina.”

“I’m extremely honored for this opportunity and look forward to serving in this role, back in the community that shaped me as a physician,” Moser said. “The support of the Salina Health Education Foundation, Salina Regional Health Center, the community providers, and the whole Salina community toward KU School of Medicine–Salina has been outstanding and a big part of the success to date. I hope to continue to support all that great work and give the KUMC-Salina students everything they need to become successful in their careers.”

Moser will lead the Salina campus of the KU School of Medicine, which was created in 2012 to address the critical shortage of physicians in Kansas.

“Dr. Moser is extraordinarily well-qualified to be my successor as Dean of the Salina campus of the University of Kansas School of Medicine,” Cathcart-Rake said. “His feet are well-grounded in rural Kansas and rural medicine and he has the leadership skills, demeanor, and intelligence to take the Salina campus to the next level.”

Moser will work closely with his colleagues in the University of Kansas School of Nursing, which opened its Salina campus in 2017. “Dr. Moser exudes passion about medicine and rural health,” said Lisa R. Larson, Ph.D., RN, assistant dean of academic affairs in the KU School of Nursing. “I look forward to working alongside and in conjunction with Dr. Moser as we educate high-quality, aspiring doctors and nurses and explore opportunities for interprofessional collaboration.”

A 1985 graduate of the KU School of Medicine, Moser has been executive director and chief medical officer of the Kansas Clinical Improvement Collaborative at The University of Kanas Health System since 2014. He will continue to support the collaborative, which focuses on quality improvement, patient safety and rural health transformation as a part of its goal to improve the health of Kansans, in a limited role once he transitions to his position as dean.

Moser also has been an associate clinical professor in the KU School of Medicine, where he served as a case-based collaborative learning facilitator in the ACE curriculum. Moser completed his family practice residency at Smoky Hill in Salina, and he spent nearly 20 years as chief of the medical staff at Greeley County Health Services, where he frequently served as a preceptor for third- and fourth-year KU medical students. He also served four years as secretary and state health officer at the Kansas Department of Health and Environment.

The KU School of Medicine has three campuses: Kansas City, Wichita and Salina.

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Robert P. Moser, M.D Photo Courtesy KU