Mitchell Mutter Named TDH Medical Director for Special Projects

NASHVILLE – Mitchell Mutter, MD, FACC, a former chief of staff for UT-Erlanger Hospital in Chattanooga and currently a cardiologist at that facility, will join the Tennessee Department of Health in August as medical director for special projects. Mutter’s duties will include liaison services with the Board of Medical Examiners, the Board of Nursing and the Board of Pharmacy.

“Mitchell Mutter is one of our state’s most respected physicians and brings the passion and commitment needed to drive improvements affecting the health and well-being of all Tennesseans,” said TDH Commissioner John Dreyzehner, MD, MPH. “While he will work with several boards and outside associations, areas of special emphasis for him will be the recently enacted Tennessee Prescription Safety Act and the TDH Controlled Substance Monitoring Database Oversight Committee.”

“The state of Tennessee will benefit tremendously from Dr. Mutter’s medical expertise and leadership skills,” said Charlesetta Woodard-Thompson, president and CEO of the Erlanger Health System. “Dr. Mutter has always been one of Erlanger’s strongest advocates, as well as one of Chattanooga’s most respected physicians, and we know he will make a positive impact on the health of all Tennesseans with his new position.”

Mutter received his medical degree from UT-Memphis. The former UT football player did his internship and residency training at Walter Reed Army Medical Center, and later served as chief of cardiology at Eisenhower Medical Center at Fort Gordon in Augusta, Ga. He was named the Tennessee Medical Association’s Outstanding Physician in 2007, and also received the Medical Staff Meritorious Service Award from the Tennessee Hospital Association in 2007. Recently he received the 2012 Distinguished Physicians Award from Erlanger Baroness Foundation.

“I’m proud to work with the Tennessee Department of Health in finding effective solutions to our state’s health challenges,” Mutter said. “Being part of a strong effort to change lives in a positive way is important to me. I’m confident the new responsibilities will allow me to partner with some of our state’s top health and medical professionals to make a difference.”

Mutter is a former president of the Hamilton County Medical Society, the Tennessee Heart Association and the Hamilton County Medical Foundation, and current president of the Tennessee Board of Medical Examiners. He also founded the Children’s Nutrition Program of Haiti, an effort he established after his first trip to that country in 1988 to provide medical services and develop a grassroots nutrition program. He and his wife Carol have three sons and two granddaughters.