2023 Academic Global Surgeon Award Recognizes Commitment to Building Education Capacity Abroad

The ACS, in association with Pfizer, Inc., is accepting nominations for the 2023 Surgical Volunteerism and Humanitarian Awards. All nominations must be submitted through the ACS nominations page by March 3, 2023. 

This award honors those surgeons committed to giving back to society by making significant contributions to surgical care through organized educational activities. This award is intended for ACS Fellows in active academic global surgical practice who are committed to applying research, training, and evidence-based advocacy to make significant contributions to surgical education and care in regions of inequities, or retired Fellows who have been involved in academic global surgery during their active practice and into retirement.

2022 Awardee

Last year, the Academic Global Surgeon Award was presented to James Allen Brown, MD, FACS, a general surgeon in Johns Island, SC, for his nearly 2 decades of work providing surgical education and training to physicians in Cameroon.

Dr. Brown’s contributions to academic surgery in Cameroon, through his work at Mbingo Baptist Hospital, have been comprehensive and transformative. Among his achievements, he initiated a Residency Review Committee (RRC) composed of all the PAACS training program directors, the chief hospital administrator, senior nursing supervisor, the head chaplain, and the chief residents from each program.

Fifty African surgical residents across the continent have received training from Mbingo in Dr. Brown’s tenure, and 20 fully trained surgical graduates from the Mbingo program now work in nine African countries.

Have you or a surgeon colleague helped to build surgeon education in a disadvantaged locale? Then read more about the award and submit a nomination today.