Lawrence Kim, MD, AGAF, has officially begun his term as the 120th president of the AGA Institute. A leader in community-based practice, Dr. Kim is a partner at South Denver Gastroenterology, an independent gastroenterology practice in Colorado.
In his 27 years in private practice, Dr. Kim has helped diversify and innovate his group. He developed a part-time partnership model, making South Denver Gastroenterology a leader in recruiting women gastroenterologists, who now comprise one-third of the practice. He incorporated endoscopic ultrasound into the practice’s advanced endoscopy service line and initiated a clinical research program. Additionally, Dr. Kim spearheaded the creation of a joint venture in gastrointestinal pathology, linking three local practices, and helped establish South Denver Gastroenterology as one of the founding groups of the Digestive Health Physicians Association, the first organization focused on advocacy for independent gastroenterology practices.




As president, Dr. Kim will ensure that AGA is an inclusive society for all gastroenterologists. He will cultivate relationships with clinicians, work to secure the viability of gastroenterology research, and champion the next generation of leaders in the specialty. Relying on core values of patient-centered and evidence-based medicine, clinicians, researchers, and educators will come together to meet the challenges of an ever-changing landscape in gastroenterology — a vision he has advocated for throughout his 30 years as an AGA volunteer.
Born and raised in New Jersey, Dr. Kim is of Korean heritage and comes from a multigenerational family of physicians. His father, Philip Kim, was a pathologist. Dr. Kim graduated cum laude from the Princeton School of Public and International Affairs. He earned his medical degree from the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. During his gastroenterology fellowship at the University of California San Francisco, Dr. Kim pursued additional training in clinical outcomes research and endoscopic ultrasound and received the young clinicians award from the American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy for his studies on the use of propofol for endoscopic sedation.
Learn more about Dr. Kim’s path to AGA presidency in Gastroenterology.