Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, Bethesda, MD  –   U.S. Navy Capt. Melissa Austin assumed directorship of Walter Reed during a change of directorship ceremony in Memorial Auditorium. She assumes the helm of the world’s most revered military hospital, often referred to as “The President’s Hospital,” during a period of transformation for the historic campus.

“To whom much is given, much is required,” emphasized Austin in thanking her mentor outgoing Walter Reed director U.S. Navy Capt. Felix A. Drew Bigby. “That’s why my goal is that each of you have the same passion, purpose, and pride for military medical service that I do,” pledged Austin - promising to embrace the challenges of leading the military’s flagship hospital by empowering creativity and collaboration each and every day.

Austin joins Walter Reed after serving as the first commanding officer of the Navy Medicine Readiness and Training Command (NMRTC) at Fort Belvoir, a command that was previously a NMRTC under Bethesda. Austin previously served as the executive officer, NMRTC Portsmouth; deputy director, Naval Medical Center Portsmouth; and as the commanding officer for Expeditionary Medical Facility Juliet.

Austin, the daughter of a career Army officer, graduated from Vanderbilt University with a Bachelor of Engineering in Biomedical Engineering and earned a commission through the Naval Reserve Officers Training Corps (NROTC) in 1996. She spent seven years in the surface warfare community before earning her Doctor of Medicine degree from the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center and completing her residency training in Anatomic and Clinical Pathology at the University of Washington Medical Center.