Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center - Houston, Texas
Leadership Team
Francisco Vazquez, M.B.A. | 713-794-7931
Medical Center Director
Francisco Vazquez, M.B.A., was appointed Medical Center Director of the Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center (MEDVAMC) on August 22, 2016. Mr. Vazquez serves as the MEDVAMC’s chief executive officer charged with management of one of the most complex VA medical centers in the country with more than 4,600 employees and an annual budget of approximately $974 million. In addition to caring for more than 109,000 Veterans in southeast Texas, the MEDVAMC also serves as a regional and national referral center for many services including cardiac surgery, liver transplant, traumatic brain injury, epilepsy and other neurological disorders, radiation therapy, and spinal cord injury care.
Mr. Vazquez has more than 23 years of federal service with a wide variety of technical and progressive leadership experience. He served as Vice President of Information Management at the Philadelphia VA Medical Center, he was the Chief Information Officer at the VA Medical Center in Sheridan, Wyoming, and he also served as the VistA System Manager at the Central Texas Veterans Health Care System. He also has been a civilian employee of the U. S. Navy and held positions in computer and software engineering at the Naval Air Warfare Center (Avionics Division) in Indianapolis, Indiana. Most recently he served as the medical center director at the Wichita, Kansas, VA Medical Center.
A proud Navy Veteran, Mr. Vazquez served as a Surface Warfare Officer onboard the USS Okinawa (LPH3) in San Diego, California from 1986 to 1990. Upon separation from active duty he served for 10 years in the United States Naval Reserve.
A graduate of the Universidad Sagrado Corazon in San Juan, Puerto Rico with a Bachelor of Science degree in Computer Science, Mr. Vazquez received a Master of Business Administration from Texas Woman's University. He is an active member of the American College of Healthcare Executives.
Karandeep Sraon, MBBS, MBA, FACHE | 713-794-8923
Deputy Medical Center Director
Karandeep Sraon was appointed Deputy Director of the Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center in May 2016. Mr. Sraon, who is also known as Kenny, has been with the Department of Veterans Affairs (DVA) since 2004 and has a track record of progressive professional development and career growth spanning field management experience, operations support, and program management.
At MEDVAMC, Mr. Sraon serves as MEDVAMC’s Chief Operating Officer, with responsibility for Communications, Facilities Management, Facility Planning, Fiscal Service, Emergency Management, Environmental Management, Human Resources, OWCP, and Police.
Prior to his appointment in Houston, Mr. Sraon was the Assistant Director of the Edward Hines, Jr. VA Hospital just outside of Chicago, Illinois, where he was responsible for resources and operations for over 600 staff with a personnel services budget of $37.2 million. Throughout his career he has embraced leadership opportunities outside of his assigned roles. He has previously served as the Acting Associate Director of Hines VA Hospital as well as the Acting Assistant Director at the Jesse Brown VA Medical Center.
In addition to his field based experience, he has gained operational knowledge at the higher levels of the Department of Veterans Affairs. In VA Great Lakes Health Care Network he served as the Business Implementation Manager and in VA Central Office in Washington, DC he was a Health Systems Specialist in the VHA Office of the Deputy Under Secretary for Health for Operations and Management.
Mr. Sraon graduated with a medical degree from Dayanand Medical College in Ludhiana, Punjab, India and is a non-practicing physician who transitioned to a career in healthcare administration by earning a Master of Business Administration in Healthcare and Marketing from Loyola University Chicago Graduate School of Business. Mr. Sraon is a board certified healthcare executive and fellow of the American College of Health Care E
J. Kalavar, M.D. | (713) 794-7011
Chief of Staff
Dr. Kalavar was appointed chief of staff of the Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center (MEDVAMC) in March 2009. Dr. Kalavar serves as the MEDVAMC's senior medical officer responsible for all clinical programs at the medical facility in Houston and its Community-Based Outpatient Clinics.
Board Certified in Internal Medicine, Dr. Kalavar received his medical degree from Madras University in Madras, India in 1979. He completed his internship and post graduate training in India and performed his residency at Christ Hospital and Medical Center in Oak Lawn, Illinois. Dr. Kalavar is an associate professor of medicine at Baylor College of Medicine and a member of the American College of Physicians.
Dr. Kalavar started his VA career as a staff physician in 1991 at Colmery O'Neil VA Medical Center in Topeka, Kansas. He was appointed director of Primary Care Service Line in 1998 and selected as director of the Primary Care Service Line for Eastern Kansas Health Care System in 2000. He joined MEDVAMC in 2001 as the Primary Care Director and served as Chief of General Medicine from 2006 to 2009. In this capacity, he was responsible for one of the largest primary care programs within the VA health care system.
As the Director of the MEDVAMC Patient Reception Team (PRT), Dr. Kalavar coordinated the movement of supplies, equipment, and personnel to Ellington Field in 2005 to respond to Hurricane Katrina. The PRT medically triaged almost 800 patients from 21 flights in the next five days. The patients, ranging from four-months old to the elderly, suffered from dehydration, fatigue, and a variety of medical conditions. In two weeks, the MEDVAMC admitted more than 100 patients from the hurricane-affected areas.
Dr. Kalavar is the recipient of the Houston Federal Executive Board 2006 Excellence in Government Award and was recognized in 2011 as a Patriotic Employer by the National Committee for Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve.
Kelly A Irving | 713-794-7475
Associate Director Patient Care Services
Kelly Irving, MSN, RN, is the MEDVAMC Associate Director, Patient Care Services (ADPCS). Ms. Irving has more than 20 years of nursing experience, including 17 years in important nursing leadership positions. As ADPCS, she serves as a key member of the medical center senior management team; providing leadership and expert knowledge for the VA's state-of-the-art medical facility and nine community based outpatient clinics in southeast Texas.
Ms. Irving has been with the Department of Veterans Affairs since March 2005 and has been at MEDVAMC since 2009. She has served as a Skin Risk Nurse Manager, Associate Chief Nurse of Operations and most recently as the Deputy Associate Director for Patient Care Services.
"I am looking forward to continuing to work with the dedicated professionals at the Houston VA and to the challenge of taking on this new position," Irving said. "I am proud of the top quality patient care that is provided to Veterans every day at this Medical Center."
Irving is also especially proud of MEDVAMC's second redesignation of Magnet Recognition for Excellence in Nursing Services that was awarded in February of this year. "I am continually amazed at what the staff here at this Medical Center can accomplish when we put our minds to it," she said. "We are the first VA in the system to receive a second redesignation of magnet status. That is something of which we can all be extremely proud."
Ms. Irving received her BSN from Our Lady of Holy Cross College in May of 1993 and then received a MSN from the University of Phoenix in September of 1998. Additionally, she received an Enterostomal Therapy Certificate from the University of Texas, MD Anderson Cancer Center in 1997. Ms. Irving is also a graduate of VISN 16 Leadership Development Institute (LDI) and Advanced LDI.
James Scheurich, M.D. | 713-794-7436
Medical Center Deputy Chief of Staff
Dr. Scheurich was appointed deputy chief of staff of the Michael E. DeBakey Veterans Affairs Medical Center on July 2, 2000. In this capacity, he serves as a senior clinician in this tertiary care medical center. Dr. Scheurich is also an assistant professor of medicine at the Baylor College of Medicine.
Dr. Scheurich is a graduate of the Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas (M.D., 1979), a member of the American College of Physicians (1987), and a member of the Society of General Internal Medicine (1987). He obtained clinical and research training in internal medicine at the Baylor College of Medicine and the Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center. Dr. Scheurich is board certified in internal medicine.
Dr. Scheurich served as special assistant to the chief of staff for quality management at the Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center, and then became associate chief of staff for quality management at the Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center.
He serves as Telecare medical director and chairperson for numerous clinical committees at the Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center. Dr. Scheurich is a member of the Internal Medicine Level I Residency Selection Committee at Baylor College of Medicine. He is a faculty member of Bayer Institute for Health Care Communication and a certified trainer. Dr. Scheurich is the author or co-author of several articles in peer reviewed journals.
Dr. Scheurich received the VISN #16 Clinical Excellence in Business Practice Award on August 11, 2004. This award, presented annually, recognizes clinicians in the Department of Veterans Affairs Veteran Integrated Service Network (VISN) #16 for special or consistent efforts to generate revenues or to help save costs in the provision of health care to Veterans while maintaining quality service. He also received the Director's Award for Professional Leadership in 1992.
Anthony L. Dawson, MHA, FACHE | 713-794-7531
Associate Director
Anthony L. Dawson was appointed Associate Director of the Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center in June 2017. Mr. Dawson has responsibility for Education, Health Administration, Logistics, Nutrition and Food Service, Pharmacy, Prosthetics, Privacy, and Systems Redesign.
Prior to joining MEDVAMC, Mr. Dawson was the Director of the Gulf Coast Veterans Health Care System. His prior leadership roles include serving as the Interim Medical Center Director of the W. G. (Bill) Hefner VA Medical Center in Salisbury, NC; Interim Director of the Central Alabama Veterans Health Care System in Montgomery, AL, and the Wilkes-Barre, PA, VA Medical Center; Associate Medical Center Director at the Salisbury, NC, VAMC; and Assistant Medical Center Director of the Indianapolis, IN VAMC.
Mr. Dawson served as the Past President of the VA National Chapter of the National Association of Health Services Executives and was recognized as a Young Black Achiever of Houston, TX. He is a graduate the Office of Personnel Management Senior Executive Service Development Program, a Fellow of the American College of Health Care Executives, and a graduate of Leadership VA, the VHA Executive Career Field Candidate Development Program, the VHA Health Care Leadership Institute, and the Federal Executive Institute. Mr. Dawson is also a VHA Certified Mentor.
A native of Prichard, AL, Dawson holds a Masters of Health Administration from Xavier University in Cincinnati, OH, a Bachelor’s degree in Respiratory Therapy from the University of Mississippi Medical Center in Jackson, MS, a Bachelor’s degree in Biology/ Pre-Med from Jackson State University in Jackson, MS, completed the Harvard University Kennedy School Executive Fellows Program, in Cambridge, MA as well as the completion of the certified Health Care Manager program at Indiana University in Indianapolis, IN.
