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 an ACS Fellow who has dedicated a significant portion of his or her surgical career to full-time or near full-time humanitarian efforts rather than routine surgical practice. This effort may reflect a career dedicated to "missionary surgery," the founding and ongoing operations of a charitable organization dedicated to providing surgical care to the underserved, or a retirement characterized by surgical volunteer outreach. Having received compensation for this work does not preclude a nominee from consideration, and, in fact, may be expected based on the extent of the professional obligation.
2022 Awardee
Last year, the Surgical Humanitarian Award was given to Ted Sugimoto, MD, FACS, for his more than 3 decades of work providing surgical care to disadvantaged patients in several African countries.
Much of Dr. Sugimoto’s surgical career was spent in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Somalia, both volatile areas, and sometimes conflicts put him and his family in personal peril.
For example, in 2002, he was working in eastern DRC when tribal conflicts escalated to war, which led to the massacre of at least 3,000 people from both tribes involved in the conflict. Many patients, hospital workers, and others were killed. Much of the hospital, built in the 1950s, and the surrounding homes and structures were destroyed, including the home where the Sugimoto family first lived when they moved to the DRC. Throughout these dire situations, Dr. Sugimoto continued to deliver care for locals and those who suffered casualties from the conflict.
Dr. Sugimoto also has been heavily involved in training the next generation of care providers, often local physicians who had limited exposure to surgery during medical school.
Have you or a surgeon colleagued dedicated your careers to humanitarian efforts in disadvantaged populations around the world? 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.
