Awards and Honors: February 2007

Posted 06:17 PM, February 22, 2007, by jaruiz

Pat Basu, MD, MBA, diagnostic radiology resident, has received the Excellence in Medicine Award presented by the American Medical Association (AMA), in association with the Pfizer Humanities Initiative. Excellence in Medicine Awards are awarded to physician, resident, fellow, and medical student leaders who demonstrate outstanding leadership in organized medicine, community affairs, and health policy with a particular promise for advancing health care in the United States. On February 12, 2007, Dr. Basu attended the AMA Foundation Excellence in Medicine Awards Ceremony and Dinner in Washington, D.C. He was the sole award recipient from Stanford and the only radiology resident among the 11 resident/fellow awardees. While in Washington, Dr. Basu attended leadership workshops and networked with legislators to share opinions on health care. He also met Bill Clinton's former communications director, George Stephanopoulos, who was the master of ceremonies at the AMA dinner on February 12. Currently, Dr. Basu is completing his rotation in emergency room radiology at the Santa Clara Valley Medical Center.

Sandip Biswal, MD, assistant professor of radiology, has been awarded the 2006 Resident Teaching Award: Junior Faculty of the Year for the second year in a row!

Sanjiv Sam Gambhir, MD, PhD, professor of radiology and bioengineering; director of the Molecular Imaging Program at Stanford; and chief of the Nuclear Medicine Division, will co-host the Nobel Symposium, "Watching Life through Molecular Imaging," along with Dr. Ringertz from May 6 to 9, 2007 at the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, Sweden. The symposium will focus on the recent advances in the rapidly expanding field of molecular imaging. Featured topics include "Advances in Molecular Imaging Instrumentation"; "Novel Chemistry and Fundamental Assays for Interrogating Molecular Events"; "Imaging of Immune, Cancer, and Stem Cell Trafficking"; "Novel Approaches to Imaging Cancer in Humans"; "Molecular Imaging of Cardiovascular Disease and Drug Efficacy"; and "Imaging the Normal Brain and Neurological Diseases."

Garry E. Gold, MD, associate professor of radiology, is a five-time winner of the Lauterbur Award for the best MRI paper from the Society for Computed Body Tomography and Magnetic Resonance. The Lauterbur Award in MR is named in honor of Paul Lauterbur, PhD, who first described the basic MRI technique in 1972 and published his first MR image in 1973 (zeugmatography). Dr. Gold received his fifth Lauterbur Award in April of 2006 at the annual meeting of the Society of Computed Body Tomography and Magnetic Resonance. His paper was titled, "Patellofemoral Pain: Analysis with Upright Real-Time MRI and 3D Finite Element Modeling."

Ha-Young Lee, PhD, postdoctoral scholar in the Molecular Imaging Program at Stanford, has received the Korean Research Foundation (KRF) Scholarship. Dr. Lee's current research focuses on developing targeted iron oxide nanoparticles for molecular imaging and drug delivery.

Amelie Lutz, MD, postdoctoral scholar in the Molecular Imaging Program at Stanford, has received an extension of her postdoctoral fellowship in the Multimodality Molecular Imaging Lab by the Swiss National Science Foundation (SNF) in Berne. Dr. Lutz's research focuses on molecular imaging in oncology, which includes the imaging of colon cancer and the early detection of ovarian cancer.

Michele Midkiff, CPC, RCC, senior radiology coder, was elected president of the American Academy of Coders (AAPC), Golden Gate Chapter. In part, the mission of the AAPC is to provide professional, ethical, and educational standards within the medical field of coding. The organization also provides certification, ongoing education, and recognition for its 60,000 worldwide members, of who over 40,000 are certified. These certifications focus on a variety of disciplines such as the physician office, Certified Professional Coder (CPC); the hospital outpatient facility, Certified Professional Coder-Hospital (CPC-H); and the payer perspective coding, Certified Professional Coder-Payer (CPC-P). The AAPC also provides continuing education through local chapters, workshops, a monthly newsmagazine (Coding Edge), publications, and conferences. The local Golden Gate Chapter of the AAPC provides networking opportunities for members and administers the CPC exam quarterly to become a Certified Professional Coder (CPC). The five-hour test covers procedural and diagnosis coding as well as medical terminology. For more information on the AAPC and the extensive possibilities in the coding profession, please contact Michele Midkiff at mmidkiff@stanfordmed.org.

Norbert Pelc, ScD, professor of radiology and bioengineering and, by courtesy, electrical engineering, has been elected to the College of Fellows of the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering (AIMBE) for his contributions to our field as a scientist, engineer, educator, and mentor for over three decades. Membership is awarded to "leaders in the field [who] have distinguished themselves through their contributions in research, industrial practice and/or education." Dr. Pelc will receive the award at the Institute's annual meeting in March 2007.

Hans Ringertz, MD, PhD, visiting professor of radiology, was named president-elect of the International Society of Radiology (ISR) at the 2006 International Congress of Radiology (ICR) in Cape Town, South Africa. In 2008, he will assume office as president of the ISR at the International Congress of Radiology (ICR) in Marrakesh, Morocco. The ISR is composed of over 200,000 radiologists representing the national societies of radiology from 89 countries. The International Society of Radiology arranges the biannual International Congress of Radiology as well as hosts the World Leadership Radiology Forum along with organizations such as the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA); the American College of Radiology (ACR); and the European Congress of Radiology (ECR). Together with Dr. Gambhir, Dr. Ringertz will be co-hosting the Nobel Symposium, "Watching Life through Molecular Imaging," from May 6 to 9, 2007 at the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, Sweden, where he is currently professor emeritus of radiology.

Matea Shimeg, radiology scheduler, received the February Stanford Hospital and Clinics Radiology Wingspread Award from the former recipient. This award is given by one employee to another who has proven that he or she is a "special performer" by demonstrating exemplary performance in areas such as job knowledge; work ethics; communication skills; inter- and intradepartmental relationships; versatility; and judgment. The Wingspread Award gives employees the opportunity to recognize who among them has gone above and beyond the fulfillment of his or her usual duties. Wingspread awardees can keep the award for as long as they wish or until they discover another "special performer." Monthly awarding of the Wingspread honor is encouraged as part of the SHC departmental staff meetings.

Juergen Willmann, MD, research fellow in the Molecular Imaging Program, has received the 2006 Editor's Recognition Award from Elsevier in recognition of his outstanding service as a reviewer of scientific manuscripts submitted for publication in the European Journal of Radiology and European Journal of Radiology Extra.