For over thirty years, the Arizona Medical Association (ArMA) has been recognizing individuals and organizations that positively impact healthcare in Arizona. Our state has remained at the forefront of healthcare in the nation, a status that is made possible by the individual actors that dedicate their life’s work to promoting health and wellbeing.
This year, the importance of recognizing those who contribute to healthcare in our state was elevated. As Arizona grappled with the COVID-19 pandemic, healthcare workers and institutions worked harder than ever to ensure the health and and safety of residents. ArMA speaks for the whole state of Arizona when we say thank you for your dedication.
ArMA was honored to announce the recipients of the 2021 Healthcare Awards during our Annual Meeting which was held virtually on Friday, April 16 and Saturday, April 17. These worthy individuals and organizations went above and beyond to ensure the needs of Arizonans were met as they faced the uncertainty of the pandemic. Please join us in congratulating the 2021 Healthcare Award recipients!
ArMA Distinguished Service Award: Ross Goldberg, MD
The ArMA Distinguished Service Award recognizes an individual or organization that has gone above and beyond in their profession, making a significant impact on the community.
As the 2020-2021 President of ArMA, Dr. Ross Goldberg was recognized for his exemplary leadership as he helped the organization navigate the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic. He ensured that ArMA members were kept updated on information about the pandemic by communicating clearly and regularly. Dr. Goldberg spent hours on local and national television sharing accurate, fact-based information about COVID-19 and the vaccines to help the public make informed decisions. He emphasized science as the defining principle of policy and remained a reliable, compassionate, and informed resource for both colleagues and the public.
David O. Landrith Humanitarian Award: Ricardo Correa, MD
The David O. Landrith Humanitarian Award recognizes those who selflessly assist underserved communities in receiving medical care and other healthcare services that lead to the betterment of their lives.
This year, the award was given to Dr. Ricardo Correa, a physician who has a long-standing history of volunteering his time to underserved communities. He has provided endocrinology care in free clinics and established programs for diabetes management. Dr. Correa has also worked to educate patients and physicians on handling chronic diseases with few resources through his program, A Vida Sana. Dr. Correa’s work through this program has positively impacted the health and health literacy of the communities he serves. During the pandemic, Dr. Correa dedicated a significant amount of his time educating the Hispanic community about COVID-19 by appearing on local and national television segments. His work supporting underserved communities in Arizona has bettered the lives of countless individuals.
Public Health Service Award: HonorHealth Vaccine Team
Each year, ArMA and the Arizona Department of Health Services (ADHS) recognize an individual, group of individuals, or educational organization whose contributions to public health have been significantby awarding them the Public Health Service Award.
This year, there was added significance to this award given the public health emergency. Dr. Cara Christ, Director of ADHS, had the honor of recognizing the HonorHealth Vaccine Team as the Public Health Service Award recipient. The HonorHealth Vaccine Team includes an army of dedicated staff and volunteers that implemented a detailed and complex vaccination campaign to combat the pandemic with precision and attention to equity. During the initial rollout of the vaccine, the team focused on vaccinating frontline doctors, nurses, residents, trainees, and environmental support staff. The team used cutting-edge technology to support the community and provided vaccinations to people at high risk for severe complications due to COVID-19. The team did more than their due diligence in ensuring the safety of Arizonans, and ArMA was proud to recognize them for their service.
Edward Sattenspiel, MD Award: Thomas Rothe, MD
This award is given in memory of Edward Sattenspiel, MD, a former ArMA president and champion for healthcare in Arizona, recognizing an individual’s long-term commitment to organized medicine.
This year, the award was given to Dr. Thomas Rothe, a family physician in Tucson who has a long-standing dedication to organized medicine. He became involved in organized medicine over forty years ago and has served as chief of staff on numerous hospital committees. After serving as the Pima County Medical Society president, Dr. Rothe became an ArMA Delegate and was later elected to a position on the Executive Committee. He has consistently recognized that the value of organized medicine lies in its ability to keep you connected with the larger physician community. His work with ArMA has profoundly impacted healthcare advocacy in Arizona.
C.H. William Ruhe Award: Mayo Clinic Arizona
The C.H. William Ruhe Award recognizes an organization for excellence in accredited continuing medical education (CME) programs in Arizona.
This year, ArMA recognized Mayo Clinic Arizona for its innovation and adaptations during the pandemic. Mayo Clinic demonstrated its ability to be forward-thinking by developing an interdisciplinary course called “COVID-19: Expert Insights and Strategies”. This course successfully met the educational needs of learners across the globe and produced nearly 80 hours of online CME content. It contains the breadth and depth of knowledge needed to take care of COVID-19 patients individually and the community at large. The course was developed and led by the Mayo Clinic School of Continuous Professional Development Arizona and includes podcasts, online lectures, video demonstrations, live webinars, panel discussions, interactive sessions, and more. The course was translated into French, Portuguese, and Spanish to increase access to non-English-speaking parts of the world. It is estimated that the course has been accessed by over 500,000 unique users in more than 80 countries.
Wallace A. Reed, MD Award: Craig Norquist, MD
The Wallace A. Reed, MD Award recognizes innovation in healthcare of an individual or organization in Arizona.
The winner of this year’s award was Dr. Craig Norquist, the Chief Medical Information Officer and Inaugural Program Director for the Clinical Informatics Fellowship at HonorHealth. Dr. Norquist collaborated on community impact projects such as opioid stewardship and improved usability for the electronic health record (EHR). Most recently, he developed protocols for the treatment and care of patients with COVID-19, including vaccination strategy. Dr. Norquist also led the data workgroup activities for screening patients for social determinants of health and developing an analytics dashboard that includes race, ethnicity, and demographics data to improve health outcome metrics. Dr. Norquist has leveraged his work in informatics to be a powerful champion for physician wellness; as the Chair of the Physician Wellness taskforce at HonorHealth, he has implemented a burnout assessment, developed strategies to combat emotional stress, and much more.
ArMA President’s Distinguished Service Award: Arizona Medical Association Staff
It is an ArMA tradition for the outgoing president to recognize an individual or group of individuals who provided significant support to the president with the ArMA President’s Distinguished Service Award.
Dr. Ross Goldberg, outgoing President of ArMA, chose to honor the Arizona Medical Association staff. He recognized them for their dedication to serving ArMA members and ensuring that their needs were met throughout the pandemic. ArMA staff worked hard to keep members informed on COVID-19 developments, distribute PPE to physicians in need of it, and collaborate with other healthcare organizations to serve the needs of the community throughout the public health emergency. The reason for any success that ArMA can claim this year was the hard work that the staff put in during this time.
