Thomas Nasca


Thomas Joseph Nasca is an American nephrologist, medical educator and administrator who served as the president and chief executive officer of the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education from 2007 to 2024.
Thomas J. Nasca Professionalism Award is named after him.

Early life and education

Thomas Joseph Nasca grew up in White Plains, New York. He earned a bachelor of science degree with high honors at the University of Notre Dame in 1971. He earned his medical degree from Jefferson Medical College in 1975. He completed his residency from UPMC Mercy. Later, he received training in internal medicine at Mercy Hospital of Pittsburgh, followed by a nephrology fellowship at Rhode Island Hospital.

Career

Nasca joined Jefferson's faculty in 1992 as vice‑chair of medicine, directing both the residency program and the division of nephrology. He became acting dean in July 2000 and was formally appointed dean and senior vice‑president for academic affairs in January 2001, assuming stewardship of Jefferson University Physicians as well. During his deanship he emphasized outcomes‑based curricula and aggressive student‑aid fundraising, initiatives that foreshadowed his later national work on competency‑based accreditation.
In September 2007, Nasca left Jefferson to lead the Chicago‑based the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education. He is credited with modernizing the U.S. accreditation framework through staged implementation of the Next Accreditation System, expanding oversight to a single pathway for both MD and DO programs, and launching major initiatives on physician well‑being, diversity, and global standards. He announced his decision to step down effective January 2025 to found the ACGME Center for Professionalism and the Future of Medicine.
In 2024, Nasca served as an honorary chair of the Arnold P. Gold Foundation's Annual Gala benefitting humanistic medical‑education programs.

Awards and recognition

Nasca was elected a Master of the American College of Physicians in 2006, has appeared repeatedly on Modern Healthcare's 50 Most Influential Physician Executives, and has received multiple honorary doctorates, including from the University of Toledo for distinguished service to medical education.

Selected publications

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