Dr. Rahul Sharma is the Barbara and Stephen Friedman Endowed Professor and Chair of the Department of Emergency Medicine at Weill Cornell Medicine and serves as the Emergency Physician-in-Chief for New York Presbyterian-Weill Cornell Medical Center. In addition, he is the Founder and Executive Director of the Center for Virtual Care at Weill Cornell Medicine. He holds dual faculty appointments as Professor of Emergency Medicine and Professor of  Population Health Sciences at Weill Cornell Medicine. As the academic Chairman for the Department of Emergency Medicine, he leads all academic and operational activities for the four Weill Cornell affiliated Emergency Departments, which include NYP-Weill Cornell Medical Center, NYP-Lower Manhattan Hospital, NYP-Brooklyn Methodist and NYP-Queens. In total, these NYP-Weill Cornell Medicine affiliated Emergency Departments treat approximately 400,000 patients annually serving a diverse population in New York City. Dr. Sharma holds several other executive healthcare leadership roles, including Chief and Medical Director of Emergency Medical Services (EMS) for the NYP enterprise, Chair of the Weill Cornell Physician Organization Finance Committee, and past president of the New York Presbyterian Hospital Medical Board. He also serves on the boards for the Weill Cornell Medicine Board of Fellows, the New York State Board for Medicine, and the Forbes Health Advisory Board. He is a Fellow of the New York Academy of Medicine and a life member of the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR).   

He is a national leader in the fields of emergency medicine, healthcare operations, telemedicine and virtual healthcare and his operational and research focus has been on the development of novel care delivery models and the use of technology to improve patient experience, safety, and quality of care. In 2020, he helped to lead the system-wide COVID-19 pandemic response at New York Presbyterian Hospital and was instrumental in developing several initiatives to transform healthcare delivery and mitigate the effects of the pandemic.  Dr. Sharma is widely published in peer reviewed publications and has been an invited guest speaker at several national and international programs, including the National Academy of Medicine. His accomplishments in innovation have been featured in several national media platforms and academic journals, including The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, NEJM Catalyst, and JAMA. Dr. Sharma has received several awards including being named a Top 25 Innovator in the healthcare industry by Modern Healthcare, a Crain’s New York Business Notable in Healthcare, and the American College of Emergency Physicians (ACEP) National Innovative Change in Practice Management Award. 

As the recipient of two national teaching awards and the founder of several innovative programs, Dr. Sharma has an established record as a medical educator.  He has been awarded the Emergency Medicine Residents’ Association (EMRA) National Excellence in Teaching Award and the American College of Emergency Physicians (ACEP) National Faculty Teaching Award.  Dr. Sharma has devised and spearheaded numerous educational programs, including the first endowed Healthcare Leadership and Management (HLM) Scholars Program for medical students at Weill Cornell Medicine, the first Physician Assistant Residency Program at NYP-Weill Cornell Medicine, and several fellowships and training programs in Healthcare Leadership and Management, Simulation and Global Emergency Medicine.    

He serves on several national committees including the American College of Emergency Physicians (ACEP) National Emergency Medicine Practice Committee and National Quality and Patient Safety Committee.  In addition, he is an Oral Boards Examiner for the American Board of Emergency Medicine (ABEM).

Dr. Sharma received a combined MD/MBA degree in Health Management from Tufts University School of Medicine and then completed his specialty training in Emergency Medicine at NYU Medical Center/Bellevue Hospital, where he was selected as Chief Resident.