David M. Naeger, MD, FACR, FAAR

David M. Naeger, MD FACR FAAR serves as Professor and Chair of the Department of Radiology at Dartmouth Health and the Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth. He also serves as Vice President of Radiology Service Line for the health system comprised of many member hospitals and an extensive network of community clinics spread throughout New Hampshire and Vermont.

Dr. Naeger earned his medical degree at Duke University School of Medicine, where he graduated AOA. After medical school, he moved to the University of California-San Francisco (UCSF) to complete his residency in Diagnostic Radiology. During his training, Dr. Naeger was a Chief Resident, earned the Department’s prestige’s Elmer Ng Award, and completed a NIH/NIBIB T32 research fellowship. After residency, Dr. Naeger’s clinical fellowships were in Cardiothoracic Imaging and Nuclear Medicine. Dr. Naeger then joined the UCSF Radiology faculty, ultimately rising to serve as the Department’s Associate Chair for Education, a Co-Director of the Henry I. Goldberg Center for Advanced Imaging Education, and Co-Director of the Innovations Funding Program for Medical Education.

In 2019, Dr. Naeger joined Denver Health, a nationally known safety net healthcare system and level I trauma center that serves Denver and the greater front range area. In this role, he oversaw the health systems full complement of diagnostic and interventional radiologists as well as a team of 135 technical staff including technologists, nurses, and administrative support staff. Denver Health’s Radiology Department experienced significant growth during Dr. Naeger’s tenure with some service lines experiencing volume increases of 40-90%. A new outpatient imaging center, a cutting-edge interventional radiology complex including a hybrid CT/angio suite, and state-of-the-art CT imaging suites were all opened as part of the Department’s multi-year strategic plan. Denver Health Radiology sponsors its own fellowships and is the largest affiliate rotation site for University of Colorado Radiology residents. While in Colorado, Dr. Naeger also served as a Professor and Vice Chair at Denver Health’s academic affiliate, the University of Colorado School of Medicine.

Dr. Naeger has consistently been honored for his excellence as a leader, researcher, and educator in radiology. Dr. Naeger is a member of 11 medical/radiology societies, and holds 20 leadership roles including numerous committee chair, Board of Director, and Executive Committee positions. Dr. Naeger has served on grant review committees/study sections and serves/served as the associate/assistant/deputy editor for three journals. Dr. Naeger has served as a course director extensively throughout his career.

Dr. Naeger has given almost 200 invited international, national, and regional talks, including speaking in Taiwan, Hungary, the Netherlands, and Canada. Many of Dr. Naeger’s talks were Grand Rounds given throughout the US.

Dr. Naeger holds Fellowships of the Association of Academic Radiologists (FAAR) and the American College of Radiology (FACR). Dr. Naeger has won the prestigious UCSF Academic Senate Distinction in Teaching Award, which is given to only two institution UCSF faculty members per year. Dr. Naeger has been awarded the Society of Thoracic Radiology Presidents’ Award twice, and the prestigious American Roentgen Ray Society Distinguished Educator Award. Dr. Naeger has been inducted into the Academies of Medical Educators at multiple institutors.

Dr. Naeger has authored over 100 peer reviewed manuscripts, 13 book chapters, and 65 abstracts. Dr. Naeger’s research and interests focus on novel curricular programs that enhance the education of medical students, residents, fellows and practicing radiologists. He has also conducted research on clinical considerations in the daily interpretation of radiologic images, with an emphasis on the imaging and diagnosis of lung cancer, lung biopsies, chest imaging and PET/CT imaging.

Since joining as Chair of the Dartmouth Health’s system-wide Radiology Department, Dr. Naeger has helped lead the Department through a period of incredible growth, including growth in the Department’s training programs, clinical service lines, imaging volumes, and physical footprint.