For more information contact: Boonshoft School of Medicine, Judi Engle, Office of Public Relations, (937) 775-2951

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 26, 2006

Alonzo Patterson, M.D., Recognized for Humanism in Medicine

DAYTON, OHIO—Alonzo Patterson III, M.D., clinical assistant professor of pediatrics at Wright State University Boonshoft School of Medicine, was recognized as one of 47 physicians nationwide selected by medical students for the Association of Medical Colleges (AAMC) Humanism in Medicine Award. He was honored during the medical school’s graduation ceremony on May 26, at the Schuster Performing Arts Center.

Patterson, a native Daytonian, graduated from Wilbur Wright High School, and his affiliation with Wright State University began in 1979, when, as a junior in high school, he became a member of the first Horizons in Medicine class. He holds a B.S. in biomedical engineering from Wright State University and an M.D. from the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine. He completed a pediatric residency program at Children’s Hospital in Columbus, Ohio. He is a member of the National Medical Association, the National Association of Minority Medical Educators, and a fellow in the American Academy of Pediatrics.

Patterson has been a mentor for Wright State medical students since 1995, while maintaining his private pediatrics practice with the Ohio Valley Medical Group in Huber Heights. In 1999, he was appointed assistant professor of pediatrics and assistant dean for minority affairs at the School of Medicine. Patterson is currently a primary care physician for the Dayton Community Associated Physicians group.

The AAMC and Pfizer Medical Humanities Initiative sponsor the AAMC Humanism in Medicine Award. It annually honors medical school faculty physicians embodying the finest qualities in a healer who teaches healing.

Honorees were nominated by the AAMC Organization of Student Representatives (OSR) nationwide based on five defining characteristics of humanism in medical education: positive mentoring skills, involvement in community service, compassion/sensitivity, collaboration with students and patients, and modeling ethics of the profession.

“Medical students learn by exposure to role-model physicians who are not only scientifically qualified but also exemplify compassion, understanding, and partnership. We are pleased to partner with the AAMC to recognize medical educators who help develop today’s medical students into tomorrow’s humanistic doctor’s,” says Mike Magee, M.D., senior medical advisor, Pfizer Inc.

The AAMC is a nonprofit association representing all 125 accredited U.S. and 17 accredited Canadian medical schools; nearly 400 major teaching hospitals and health systems, including 68 Department of Veterans Affairs medical centers; and 94 academic and scientific societies. Through these institutions and organizations, the AAMC represents 109,000 faculty members, 67,000 medical students, and 104,000 resident physicians. It’s mission is to improve the health of the public by enhancing the effectiveness of academic medicine.

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