DANA ILEANA WILLIAMS, M.D.

10/30/2026

EXECUTIVE BIOGRAPHY

Pediatric Gastroenterologist | Medical Director, Patient Experience | Physician Leader in Multidisciplinary Care and Organizational Improvement

Dr. Dana Williams is a pediatric gastroenterologist and physician leader at Phoenix Children's Hospital whose career has been dedicated to improving the care of children with complex medical conditions through multidisciplinary collaboration, clinical innovation, education, and organizational improvement. She serves as Medical Director of Patient Experience while maintaining an active clinical practice and leading Phoenix Children's nationally and internationally recognized Pediatric Feeding Disorders and Aerodigestive Programs.

Throughout her career, Dr. Williams has focused on building systems of care that improve outcomes for children and families. She has developed and led multidisciplinary programs that integrate physicians, advanced practice providers, nursing, nutrition, speech-language pathology, occupational therapy, psychology, and care coordination into highly collaborative models of care. Her work has helped establish Phoenix Children's as a national leader in pediatric feeding disorders and aerodigestive medicine while advancing coordinated care for children with complex feeding and swallowing disorders.

Since assuming the role of Medical Director of Patient Experience in 2023, Dr. Williams has helped broaden the organization's approach to patient experience by strengthening physician engagement, advancing leadership development, improving measurement strategies, and promoting organizational learning. She has led initiatives focused on communication, multidisciplinary teamwork, clinician coaching, and patient-centered improvement while organizing Phoenix Children's inaugural Patient Experience Conference and serving as Chair of the Patient Experience Committee for Phoenix Children's Medical Group.

Dr. Williams is recognized nationally for her leadership in pediatric patient experience and multidisciplinary pediatric care. She serves in leadership positions within the Pediatric Experience Collaborative and the Aerodigestive Society, where she contributes to advancing collaborative care models, physician engagement, education, research, and the integration of patient and family experience into healthcare improvement across children's hospitals. She also serves as the clinician executive chair of the Pediatric Experience Collaborative (23 pediatric healthcare systems).

A passionate educator and mentor, Dr. Williams has dedicated much of her career to developing future physician leaders, mentoring medical students, residents, and interdisciplinary professionals while fostering scholarly work in clinical innovation, quality improvement, and patient experience. Her academic contributions include numerous peer-reviewed publications, national presentations, and multidisciplinary educational programs. She has received multiple institutional and national recognitions for excellence in patient experience, collaborative leadership, teaching, and clinical care.

Dr. Williams completed her pediatric residency, chief residency, pediatric gastroenterology fellowship, and immunology research training at Weill Cornell Medical College and Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center before joining Phoenix Children's Hospital in 2004. She is a Clinical Associate Professor of Pediatrics at the University of Arizona College of Medicine–Phoenix and remains committed to advancing exceptional pediatric care through collaboration, innovation, and the development of healthcare systems that better serve children, families, and clinicians.