I first walked into Dr. Berger’s office (in 2004) …for my interview for a surgical research fellowship. Dr. Berger had a very busy and a well-funded surgical research lab at the VA Medical Center. I had recently arrived in the United States from Pakistan .... To become a surgeon in the US is a daunting task for any medical graduate and it’s a particularly uphill battle for an international medical graduate. In my meeting with Dr. Berger, I expressed my passion and commitment to research and acknowledged that with my mostly clinical background, I didn’t have much basic science research experience...The next morning at 6 AM, I received an email from Dr. Berger, offering me an opportunity to join his research team. From then on, Dr. Berger became my mentor and had a profound and lasting impact on my academic career. …  My next two years under his guidance was the most productive and rewarding period of my early career. I learned tremendously from this experience… Dr. Berger would inspire and challenge me. … I am now an academic cardiothoracic and aortic surgeon at the University of Colorado, Denver. Now, when I mentor medical students, surgical residents and fellows in the surgical research lab and operating room, Dr. Berger remains one of my role models. The way he taught me to develop scientific thinking, never hesitate to ask questions, be an independent thinker, and bring novel ideas to the table every day, I hope to impart this to the next generation of academic surgeons. Dr. Berger provided me with his highly invaluable support and guidance in the early part of my career which allowed me to flourish. In short, Dr. Berger is a gem and a mentor of mentors. He has inspired a generation of academic surgeons and my story is just one of many. — Muhammad Aftab MD, FACS, FACC, Assistant Professor in Cardiothoracic Surgery, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus

“David has been a fabulous mentor to me throughout my career. I first connected with David when I became interested in healthcare quality improvement. David chaired the organization's quality committee and welcomed my input, even as a quality & safety neophyte. Later, when I had proposed starting an organization-wide quality improvement conference, David not only volunteered to serve on the planning committee but also coached me about how to garner financial support for the conference and run it successfully.

Over the years, David has offered invaluable insights and support as I served in new positions. He is always willing to share his knowledge and volunteers to facilitate connections to people in his professional network. I owe a great deal to David for his mentorship and have tried to emulate his mentorship in my relationships with others.” — Emily Sedgwick, MD, FSBI, CPHQ, CPE, Chief Executive Officer for University Medical Center New Orleans

“David is always looking for ways to improve the patient experience. He supports research and is the type of leader you want to work with in today’s ever-changing healthcare setting.” – Jennifer Nitschmann, former CNO, Baylor St. Luke’s Medical Center

“David stands up for what is right and does what he says. He is trustworthy, resilient and effective.” – W. Keith Neeley, VP of Facilities, University of Tennessee Medical Center Knoxville

I have known Dr. David Berger for almost 20 years and our relationship has spanned all aspects of my medical career, from student, to resident, to attending surgeon.  Over these years, the characteristics that have stood out to me are his authenticity, integrity, desire to advance the field of medicine and his love to mentor and professionally develop young surgeons. Dr. Berger offered me my first job as an attending straight out of residency and took me under his wing. I will never forget how he gave me an opportunity during a difficult time and mentored me during my most formidable years as a new attending. He would often come into my office and just sit down and talk to me. As we all have busy schedules, careers, and families, it is a testament to his impact in my life that even after 20 years, I still seek his professional advice and more importantly, treasure our friendship.
— Thu Ha Liz Lee, MD, FACS, Breast Surgeon, Southwest Surgical Associates, and former Surgical Resident Baylor College of Medicine

“David was an influential mentor during my Time at BSLMC. He showed a high level of care for my success. He challenged me to bring different perspectives to my resources management, quality, safety and growth. David is one of the most innovative leaders I ever worked with. With his encouragement, I was able to redesign multiple programs and system for care delivery.” —Sal Ababneh, President for Swedish American, a Division of UW Health

“David Berger is an influential mentor to me and a number of other people . I was fortunate he offered his guidance when we were at UF Health several years ago. He took the time to identify areas I could strengthen and encouraged me to cultivate my own leadership style. In addition, David would always be direct and candid with feedback, and I was always appreciative knowing he was trying to coach and develop. He always cited specific examples and situations to illustrate his points. I leaned on him when I was pursuing my next move after UF Health and he was instrumental in my process of joining Ascension as a hospital president. To this day David continues to provide advice and counsel in my current role as well as my future career path. He is always willing to listen and offer his thoughts anytime I contact him.” —Alex Chang, MHA, FACHE, President, South Region - Ascension St. Vincent Evansville

“David uniquely blends the leadership talent of an executive strategist and an experienced hospital operator. I admire how he projects the long-range strategic vision for transformative efforts, all while remaining attuned to the operational practicalities needed to succeed. Quick in analyzing data; thoughtful in reading situations; careful in navigating politics; and yet always to-the-point to move the ball forward. David is a seasoned executive who knows how to engage faculty and administrators alike. I have seen him lead an organization on a complex transformation journey. I wish we had more physician executives like David leading change.  David uniquely blends the leadership talent of an executive strategist and an experienced hospital operator. I admire how he projects the long-range strategic vision for transformative efforts, all while remaining attuned to the operational practicalities needed to succeed. Quick in analyzing data; thoughtful in reading situations; careful in navigating politics; and yet always to-the-point to move the ball forward. David is a seasoned executive who knows how to engage faculty and administrators alike. I have seen him lead an organization on a complex transformation journey. I wish we had more physician executives like David leading change.” —Felix Matthews, MD, MBA, Healthcare Strategist

“David is a rare healthcare leader who has successfully operated at the intersection of care delivery, quality, innovation, technology and administration. There are very few hospital CEOs who have David's savvy ability to see into the future of healthcare delivery and understand digital health transformation - in fact, David has been involved in digital health from as far back as 2012, well before it was mainstream! I am grateful to have learned so much from David and benefit from his intellectual horsepower, deep perspectives on quality and patient safety, and selflessness to put the patient experience first.” —Joshua Liu, MD, Co-founder/CEO, SeamlessMD