Inaugural awards bestowed on medical faculty

Eighteen School of Medicine faculty were presented with the first Distinguished Faculty Awards, which recognize outstanding achievements in clinical care, community service, research and teaching.

“Washington University School of Medicine is a vital community of faculty, students and staff, all dedicated to excellence in patient care, education, research and community service,” said Larry J. Shapiro, M.D., executive vice chancellor for medical affairs and dean of the School of Medicine. “In an atmosphere of collegiality and collaboration, our accomplishments are fueled by the talents and energy of people who accept the challenge of leading the advancement of health-care delivery and biomedical science.”

Photo by Robert Boston

Although there are other award programs at the School of Medicine, the school has not had an overarching honorary program for its faculty, said Diana L. Gray, M.D., associate dean for faculty affairs and professor of obstetrics and gynecology and of radiology.

“This is an effort to better recognize how truly outstanding our faculty are and to bring them some of the distinction that they deserve,” she said.

The new awards, co-sponsored by the dean’s office, the Office of Faculty Affairs, Central Administration and the ECFC, had been in the works for several years, Gray said.

The winners are:

Distinguished Clinician Award

• John P. Atkinson, M.D., the Samuel B. Grant Professor of Medicine
• Louis P. Dehner, M.D., professor of pathology and immunology
• Heidi Prather, D.O., associate professor of orthopaedic surgery
• Shirley Sahrmann, Ph.D., professor of physical therapy
• Franz J. Wippold II, M.D., professor of radiology

Distinguished Community Service Award

• Linda B. Cottler, Ph.D., professor of epidemiology in psychiatry
• Katie Plax, M.D., assistant professor of pediatrics
• Consuelo Hopkins Wilkins, M.D., assistant professor of medicine

Distinguished Educator Award

Clinical Fellow Mentoring

• Barbara S. Monsees, M.D., the Ronald and Hanna Evens Professor of Women’s Health and professor of radiology

Graduate Student Teaching

• Joseph L. Price, Ph.D., professor of anatomy and neurobiology

House Staff Teaching

• Abdullah M. Nassief, M.D., assistant professor of neurology

Postdoctoral Research Mentoring

• Timothy J. Ley, M.D., the Alan A. and Edith L. Wolff Professor of Medicine

Distinguished Investigator Award

• Shin-ichiro Imai, M.D., Ph.D., assistant professor of developmental biology
• David A. Rudnick, M.D., Ph.D., assistant professor of pediatrics
• Richard S. Hotchkiss, M.D., professor of anesthesiology
• Jeanne M. Nerbonne, Ph.D., the Alumni Endowed Professor of Molecular Biology and Pharmacology
• Robert D. Schreiber, Ph.D., the Alumni Endowed Professor of Pathology and Immunology

Daniel P. Schuster Award for Distinguished Work in Clinical and Translational Science

• Samuel Klein, M.D., the William H. Danforth Professor of Medicine and Nutritional Science