Kara Odom Walker

Kara Odom Walker
MD
Walker at TANF Awards of Excellence in 2018
Secretary of Delaware Department of Health and Social Services
In office
February 6, 2017 – June 2020
GovernorJohn Carney
Personal details
Alma materUniversity of Delaware, BS, 1999
Jefferson Medical College, MD, 2004
Johns Hopkins School of Public Health, MPH, 2003
University of California, Los Angeles, Fielding School of Public Health, MSHS, 2009
Previous WorkplacesUniversity of California, San Francisco, 2010 – 2012
Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute, 2012 – 2017
Current WorkplaceNemours Alfred I. duPont Hospital for Children

Kara Odom Walker, MD, MPH, MSHS is a health policy leader and serves as the Chief Population Health Officer at Nemours Alfred I. duPont Hospital for Children, where she leads all aspects of population health strategy, research, innovation and implementation. Her scope of responsibility includes the advancement of the overall health and well-being of children, both broadly and among the populations served by Nemours Children's. Dr. Walker is a board-certified, practicing family physician.

Dr. Walker also leads Nemours Delaware Valley primary care network and its Value-Based Services Organization. She collaborates with Nemours operational leaders and shares accountability for managed care initiatives, including medically complex case management, school-based wellness programs and other services for specific populations.

From February 2017 to June 2020, she served as Secretary of the Delaware Department of Health and Social Services. Prior to holding that position, she served as the Deputy Chief Science Officer at the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI) In 2018, she was elected to the National Academy of Medicine.