Frances Murphy

Dr. Murphy has had a distinguished career which includes 30 years as a physician, educator, researcher, and health care executive.

Dr. Murphy serves as a consultant and subject matter expert on strategic planning, business process redesign, program evaluation, evidence-based medicine, performance measurement and quality management, research management, organizational change and leadership development, policy and data analysis, and health information technology. Dr. Murphy is a member of the Editorial Board for Military Medicine, and the National Academy’s Human Studies Institutional Review Board.

During her over 20 years of career service with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Dr. Murphy served in progressively responsible leadership roles including Acting Under Secretary for Health (2002), and Deputy Under Secretary for Health (1999-2002) and Under Secretary for Health Policy Coordination (2003-2006). As Deputy Under Secretary for Health, she served as the chief operating officer for the Veterans Health Administration (VHA), the largest integrated health system in the U.S. From 2003-2006, Dr. Murphy served as the Deputy Under Secretary for Health Policy Coordination, leading interagency health policy and program development, and serving as principal liaison between the Department of Veterans Affairs and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). She served as a member of the President’s New Freedom Commission on Mental Health and chaired the Veterans Affairs Secretary’s Task Force on Mental Health. Dr. Murphy’s efforts transformed VA mental health care and were recognized by two national awards.

She received her MD degree from Georgetown University and a MPH from USUHS. Dr. Murphy is a board certified neurologist and a veteran of the U.S. Air Force Medical Corps.