Leonard Tow Humanism in Medicine Award

Leonard Tow Humanism in Medicine Award

The Leonard Tow Humanism in Medicine Awards presented by The Arnold P. Gold Foundation recognize graduating students and faculty members who demonstrate both clinical excellence and outstanding compassion in the delivery of care and who show respect for patients, their families, and healthcare colleagues.

View a list of the 2021 recipients of the Tow Award, searchable by recipient name or institution.

The Gold Foundation launched this award in 1991 at Columbia University College of Physicians & Surgeons. The Healthcare Foundation of New Jersey began replicating these awards nationwide in 1998, with participation from The Gold Foundation. In 2003, thanks to a generous donation from Leonard Tow, these awards became solely sponsored and administered by The Gold Foundation.

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Who is Eligible?

Accredited schools of medicine in the US and Canada are eligible to present the Tow Award.

Schools select a faculty and student awardee every year. Recipients need to be a graduating senior and a faculty member (MD or DO).

How to Apply

More than 100 medical schools participate in this award. If your school does not yet participate in this program and would like to participate in the 2021 year, please submit an application to Louisa Tvito at ltvito@gold-foundation.org.

All applications must include the following:

  • Institutional Letter of Support
  • Narrative describing the following:
    •  Background on school/institution and accreditation status
    • The potential impact of this award
    • How the awardees will be selected
    • How the awards will be publicized on your campus
    • When/how the award will be presented

Selection Process

Participating medical schools agree to engage in a fair process to nominate one graduating student and one faculty member each year.

The following document outlines the procedures, process and criteria  in further details. Note that the process is slightly different for schools with a Gold Humanism Honor Society chapter and those without.

Tow Procedures and Criteria – GHHS

Tow Procedures and Criteria – non GHHS

Reporting Requirements

Interim and final report are due to the Arnold P. Gold Foundation as described in the procedure and criteria document. All reports need to be submitted using the respective online forms.