Dr. Kristen M.J. Azar serves as the Vice President of Quality and Performance Excellence at the Institute on Aging (IOA) in San Francisco. For nearly 50 years, the Institute on Aging has advanced innovative models of care that support older adults and adults with disabilities through health, social, and community-based services. Guided by a mission to serve the underserved, IOA is committed to redefining aging as a chapter of dignity, connection, and possibility—pioneering approaches that both meet urgent needs and shape the future of aging services. Dr. Azar brings more than 16 years of experience at Sutter Health, where she co-designed, launched, and served as the inaugural Executive Director of the Institute for Advancing Health Equity (IAHE) within the Quality and Patient Safety Division. Under her leadership, IAHE grew into a systemwide program that improved patient experience, reduced disparities, and embedded equity into organizational frameworks.

In addition to her role at IOA, Dr. Azar is faculty with the Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI) and an Adjunct Assistant Professor at UCSF. Over the past decade, she has secured funding, published extensively on health equity, social drivers of health, chronic disease management, and quality improvement, and shared strategies nationally with policy and health system leaders. She holds graduate degrees from Johns Hopkins and UCSF, is a Fellow of the American Heart Association and is a Certified Professional in Healthcare Quality (CPHQ).