Dr. Nancy Snyderman, NBC News’s Chief Medical Editor, has announced that she will be stepping down from NBC News. In a statement, she said that she will be taking a faculty position at a “major U.S. medical school.” However, she does say that educating “viewers” will continue to be one of her priorities.
Dr. Snyderman was embroiled in controversy recently. She went overseas to cover the Ebola story in Africa and one of the NBC cameramen caught the disease. When she returned, Dr. Snyderman and the rest of the NBC unit were placed under quarantine. However, she violated her quarantine and went into public. Her break was discovered and she caught flak for the decision. She was then suspended by NBC News for a period of time. Eventually, she returned to NBC News.
I stepped out of the OR a few years ago and it is now time for me to return to my roots, so I am stepping down from my position as Chief Medical Editor at NBC News. Covering the Ebola epidemic last fall in Liberia, and then becoming part of the story upon my return to the U.S., contributed to my decision that now is the time to return to academic medicine. I will be shortly taking up a faculty position at a major U.S. medical school. More needs to be done to communicate medicine and science to our viewers and citizens, especially in times of crisis, and with my experiences in the field and on air, that is going to be a priority for me.
“I have loved my nine years at NBC and I am proud of the work my team has done. Very few people get the chance to combine two professions and I have appreciated the chance to inform the public about medical updates and the plight of so many in other countries. Every moment has been an honor.
During Dr. Snyderman’s suspension, Dr. Natalie Azar filed medical reports for the news organization. NBC has not announced whether Dr. Azar will be the replacement for Dr. Snyderman. However, a NBC spokesman did release the following statement:
Throughout her career with NBC News, Dr. Nancy Snyderman has provided her expertise on countless health and medical topics that are vitally important to our audience. She’s been a valuable voice both on air and in our newsroom, and we wish her all the best.