Lisa Yerian, MD, is the chief improvement officer and a gastrointestinal and hepatobiliary pathologist at the Cleveland Clinic. She holds a bachelor's degree from the University of Notre Dame and completed her medical degree, residency training in anatomic pathology, and a fellowship in gastrointestinal and liver pathology at the University of Chicago-Pritzker School of Medicine.
Yerian joined the Cleveland Clinic in 2004, where she has held several pathology and health system leadership positions. In 2010, she helped develop and then accepted the new role of medical director of continuous improvement, and in 2019, became chief improvement officer. She now leads a team of continuous improvement professionals engaged in building an improvement culture and driving strategic improvements across the Cleveland Clinic Health System. Under her leadership, the Cleveland Clinic Improvement Model (CCIM, www.clevelandclinic.org/improve) was developed, tested and refined as the roadmap for the entire organization to pursue a culture of improvement.
Yerian has authored over 150 manuscripts, articles and book chapters in the fields of pathology and improvement. Her efforts have been recognized in multiple awards, including the Association of American Medical Colleges Clinical Care Innovation Challenge Award (2016), the Smart Culture Conference Buffalo Award (2018), and the Outstanding Innovation in Delivery Solutions Award (2020). Yerian serves on the board of directors for Lean Enterprise Institute and Catalysis. She speaks nationally and internationally on pathology and improvement. 
