This announcement was first published on the AAMC website here.
Dr. Patricia Garcia, 2020 Arnold P. Gold Foundation Humanism in Medicine Award at the AAMC honoree
Together with the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC), the Gold Foundation is pleased to announce that Patricia Garcia, MD, MPH, Associate Dean for Curriculum and Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology and Medical Education at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, has been selected to receive the 2020 Arnold P. Gold Foundation Humanism in Medicine Award at the AAMC. Administered by the AAMC Organization of Student Representatives, this annual award honors caring and compassionate mentors in medical school education.
Dr. Garcia exemplifies humanism in medicine, working tirelessly to champion her patients, students, and a better society.
Attending medical school in the 1980s, Dr. Garcia became intensely interested in caring for patients with HIV and AIDS. As a fellow, she co-founded the first women’s HIV program at Northwestern Memorial Hospital. Today, the clinic has a 99% success rate in eliminating maternal-fetal transmission of HIV.
When joining her in clinic, medical students attest that Dr. Garcia is deeply familiar with the unique situation, circumstances, and personal attributes, values, and beliefs of each of her patients. Through her words and actions, she provides a gentle, comforting presence and models the importance of seeing each patient as a whole person who is empowered to make the right choice for them.
Her commitment to eliminating perinatal transmission of HIV extends far beyond her clinic. She founded the Pediatric AIDS Chicago Prevention Initiative and traveled to labor and delivery units throughout Illinois to train staff in how to perform HIV testing for pregnant mothers and ensure transmission-preventing treatment could be provided.
As associate dean for curriculum at Feinberg, Dr. Garcia helped spur updates to many courses. In addition to championing faculty innovation in the classroom, she is a big supporter of student-led initiatives, including a recent health care hackathon and the creation of “Safe Space Training” for faculty and staff, an initiative to improve the learning environment for LGBT+ students.
Deeply committed to the power of the collective to work toward creating a more just society, Dr. Garcia engages in advocacy professionally and personally, working with the Illinois legislature to improve health and, in 2013, as a personal claimant in a lawsuit that resulted in LGBT+ marriage equality in.
Dr. Garcia completed her MD and MPH at the University of Illinois, Chicago. She completed her obstetrics and gynecology residency at the University of Illinois Hospital and her maternal-fetal medicine fellowship at Northwestern University, McGaw Medical Center.
Learn more about the Arnold P. Gold Foundation Humanism in Medicine Award at the AAMC.
