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RLI Taking the Lead Podcasts

Episode 35: Brent Wagner, MD, MBA


Headshot of Dr. Wagner

Leaving Things Better


June 17, 2021

In this episode, Brent Wagner, MD, MBA, shares his leadership journey from the Philadelphia suburbs to his current role as Executive Director of the American Board of Radiology (ABR) in Tucson, AZ.

Driven by the desire to “leave the world a little better then he found it,” (a quote from Sir Robert Baden-Powell, the founder of the Boy Scouts, and frequently shared by his father), Dr. Wagner has approached all opportunities by first asking “How can I help?” and then taking on the challenge with hard work and accountability.

After majoring in Chemistry at Lafayette College (where he started at 16!), he completed medical school at Jefferson Medical College and his residency at Wilford Hall USAF Medical Center. After spending time in the Department of Radiologic Pathology at the Armed Forces Institute of Pathology (AFIP), he went on to serve for 22 years in a private practice group in Reading, PA during which time he held a variety of leadership positions including department chair, group president, medical staff president, member of the leadership council, and chairman of the board of the health system.

In this conversation, Dr. Wagner recounts how he chose radiology, how earning his MBA has helped him think differently, what keeps him up at night and how he plans to tackle the challenges ahead of him in his role with the ABR.

View episode transcript »

Brent Wagner, MD, MBA

Brent Wagner, MD, MBA, is the Executive Director of the American Board of Radiology (ABR) in Tucson, Arizona, following more than a decade as a volunteer including service as an exam committee member, Trustee for Genitourinary Radiology, and President of the Board of Governors. His early career included an opportunity to serve as Course Director and faculty member in the Department of Radiologic Pathology at the Armed Forces Institute of Pathology (AFIP) in Washington, DC. Prior to joining the ABR full time in July 2020, he spent 22 years in a private practice group of 25 radiologists in Reading, Pennsylvania. During that time he held a variety of hospital leadership roles including department chair, group president, medical staff president, member of the leadership council, and chairman of the board of the health system.

Did You Know?

Dr. Wagner has been married for 35 years. Together, he and his wife have three children, ages 28-33, and two grandsons, ages 2 and 4.

Dr. Wagner chose radiology late in medical school because he enjoyed every specialty. His last medical school rotation was in radiology at an Air Force hospital where he eventually completed his residency. Every radiology case was like an interesting detective story.

Dr. Wagner’s hobbies include skiing and golf, though he feels he gets worse each year (especially golf). More recently, Dr. Wagner has been working on completing his MBA (2017-2019). And his favorite “rainy day activity” is reading almost anything though he admits that he enjoys reading even on days when it’s not raining.

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