Dr. Joseph W. St. Geme, III works closely with colleagues across the CHOP enterprise to ensure that CHOP remains a world leader in pediatric clinical care, research, and education.

From 1992 to 2005, Dr. St. Geme was a member of the faculty in the Department of Pediatrics and the Department of Molecular Microbiology at Washington University in St. Louis, MO. There he served as Director of Pediatric Infectious Diseases and co-leader of the Pediatric Infection, Immunity, and Inflammation Research Unit. In 2005, he was recruited to Duke University, where he was the James B. Duke Professor and Chair of the Department of Pediatrics, the Chief Medical Officer of Duke Children's Hospital, and a Professor of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology. In 2013, Dr. St. Geme relocated to Philadelphia to assume new responsibilities as Chair of the Department of Pediatrics and Physician-in-Chief at CHOP and Chair of the Department of Pediatrics at the Perelman School of Medicine. In 2016, he also assumed the role of President of the CHOP Practice Association (CHOPPA). After serving as Department Chair for 12 years, he relinquished this role in 2025

Dr. St. Geme has an active laboratory research program that focuses on the molecular basis of host-pathogen interactions involving pathogenic bacteria, with particular emphasis on Haemophilus influenzae and Kingella kingae. Haemophilus influenzae is a common commensal in the nasopharynx and is the leading cause of otitis media and sinusitis in children and exacerbations of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease in adults. Kingella kingae is a common colonizer in the posterior pharynx and has emerged as a major cause of bone and joint infections in young children.

Dr. St. Geme and his research team are using genetic methods, protein chemistry, X-ray crystallography, high-resolution microscopy, genomic analysis, and cell biology approaches to study the molecular and cellular determinants of Haemophilus influenzae and Kingella kingae disease, aiming to understand how these organisms:

1. Initiate infection
2. Establish a state of commensalism
3. Transition from a state of commensalism to produce disease

The team's long-term goals are to identify common mechanisms in bacterial pathogenesis and to develop new antimicrobials with activity against a wide range of pathogenic gram-negative bacteria and novel vaccines.

Dr. St. Geme has been elected to the Society for Pediatric Research, the American Pediatric Society, the American Society for Clinical Investigation, the Association of American Physicians, the American Academy of Microbiology, the American Association for the Advancement of Science, and the National Academy of Medicine.

Dr. St. Geme received his bachelor's degree from Stanford University and his medical degree from Harvard Medical School. He completed a pediatric residency and chief residency at CHOP and pursued postdoctoral training in microbiology and infectious diseases at Stanford University.

BS, Stanford University, Stanford, CA (Biology), 1979

MD, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, 1981

Intern, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA, 1985

Chief Resident, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA, 1988

Postdoctoral Fellow, Stanford University, Stanford, CA (Department of Microbiology and Immunology), 1992

Postdoctoral Fellow, Stanford University, Stanford, CA (Department of Pediatrics, Division of Infectious Diseases), 1992

Physician-in-Chief

Leonard and Madlyn Abramson Endowed Chair in Pediatrics

Professor of Pediatrics and Microbiology

Pediatric Scientist Training Program Fellowship Award, Association of Medical School Pediatric Department Chairs, 1988

American Lung Association of California Research Fellowship Award, 1990

Infectious Diseases Society of America, Young Investigator Award, 1994

March of Dimes, Basil O'Connor Award, 1995

Election to the Society for Pediatric Research, 1996

Pediatric Infectious Disease Society, Young Investigator Award, 1996

American Heart Association, Established Investigator Award, 1997

Infectious Diseases Society of America, Squibb Award, 1998

Election to the American Society for Clinical Investigation, 1998

Election to the American Pediatric Society, 2003

Outstanding Research Mentor Award, Washington University School of Medicine, 2005

Election to the Association of American Physicians, 2007

Election to the American Academy of Microbiology (Fellow), 2007

Election to the American Association for the Advancement of Science (Fellow), 2009

Election to the National Academy of Medicine (formerly the Institute of Medicine), 2010

Distinguished Service Award, Pediatric Infectious Diseases Society, 2011

Election to the Henry Kunkel Society, 2013