Bernard Costello
Biography
Bernard J. Costello, M.D., D.M.D. is the senior vice president for health affairs at Wayne State University, where he leads the institution’s comprehensive health sciences enterprise. In this role, Dr. Costello oversees the School of Medicine, College of Nursing, Eugene Applebaum College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences, and development of the emerging school of public health. The Division of Health Affairs is also home to key cross-cutting and interdisciplinary functions that strive to mitigate the community’s health challenges and reduce persistent disparities in health outcomes endemic to its region. Dr. Costello’s expertise and documented record of advancing community health through teamwork guides strategy across these units, including clinical relationships and affiliations, interprofessional education, research, and community engagement.
Dr. Costello joined Wayne State from the University of Pittsburgh (Pitt), where he was associate vice chancellor for interdisciplinary education in health sciences and full professor of oral and maxillofacial surgery. He also was chief of pediatric oral and maxillofacial surgery at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center’s top ten-ranked children’s hospital. With more than two decades of leadership experience across six highly ranked health sciences schools, Dr. Costello transformed interprofessional education, reengineered clinical operations, and accelerated and grew research initiatives and external funding.
Dr. Costello is an acknowledged expert for his translational research in regenerative medicine strategies for craniofacial deformities. He has been a primary investigator and collaborator for projects and multi-institutional grants to develop regenerative technologies with Pitt’s Center for Craniofacial Regeneration. As a peer-reviewed and externally funded investigator, collaborator and senior leader, Dr. Costello has developed and led interdisciplinary teams to generate innovation in regenerative medicine and launch new companies based on that technology. His vision for research excellence through complementary teams helped position them into the top five for National Institutes of Health-funded research. He is also a vocal advocate for responsible pain management, promoting non-opioid treatment approaches and strategies to address the opioid addiction crisis.
After earning his M.D. and D.M.D. at the University of Pennsylvania, Dr. Costello completed his residency at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania and Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, followed by a pediatric craniofacial fellowship at the Posnick Center for Facial Surgery and Georgetown University Medical Center. He has published numerous peer-reviewed publications and served as an editor and author for key texts on craniomaxillofacial reconstruction. Dr. Costello has held leadership roles with many key professional associations, boards and foundations, including past president for the American Board of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, past president of the American Academy of Craniomaxillofacial Surgeons, and past president of the American Cleft Palate-Craniofacial Association.