28 given awards for notable and longtime service

November 2015—Donald S. Karcher, MD, was presented Oct. 4 with the Pathologist of the Year award during the spotlight event at the CAP ’15 annual meeting in Nashville. At the same event, at the Gaylord Opryland, Rajesh C. Dash, MD, was given the Pathology Advancement award, and Latha Pisharodi, MD, received the CAP Foundation Gene and Jean Herbek Humanitarian award. Mary L. Paton, MT(ASCP), was given the CAP Staff Outstanding Achievement award.

Twenty-four others received CAP or CAP Foundation awards Oct. 3 during a joint session of the House of Delegates and Residents Forum or Oct. 4 during the scientific plenary session.

Dr. Karcher was honored for his service and contributions to the CAP and the practice of pathology, specifically for his commitment to preparing pathologists for future roles in value-based care.

“I’ve been privileged to work with many talented and dedicated people who are helping to shape the future of pathology practice and ensure pathology’s place as a pillar of our health care system,” Dr. Karcher said in his published note of acceptance of the award.

He has been a faculty member at George Washington University Medical Center in Washington, DC, for 31 years, 16 of which he has served as chair of the Department of Pathology. He has been director of laboratories at the medical center since 1996.

Dr. Dash’s Pathology Advancement award was for his work in advancing the positioning of pathologists in the House of Medicine and in the delivery of safer patient care. He has served as chair of the Informatics Committee since 2011 and as vice chair of the Clinical Informatics Steering Committee since last year.

Dr. Dash participated in the SNOMED committees until 2007, the original Information Science and Technology Committee, Informatics Graduate Medical Education Working Group, Biorepository Accreditation Program Committee, and Personalized Health Care Committee.

He is an associate professor of pathology in the Department of Pathology at Duke University School of Medicine and director of laboratory informatics strategy and vice chair of pathology IT, Duke University Health System.

The CAP Foundation presented Dr. Pisharodi with its Gene and Jean Herbek Humanitarian award for her dedication to See, Test & Treat and to support her vision in enhancing the program beyond its core services. With her award, Dr. Pisharodi plans to create a “Screen for Life” educational video that will tell the story of cancer screening, in hopes of reducing fears and correcting misperceptions that See, Test & Treat participants might harbor.

Dr. Pisharodi is director of cytopathology at Rhode Island Hospital, The Miriam Hospital, and Newport Hospital, all in Providence, and an associate professor of pathology at The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University.

The first Staff Outstanding Achievement award went to Mary Paton for her instrumental role in the growth of the CAP’s proficiency testing programs. As senior technical director, scientific resources, Paton serves as the professional staff member for the Council on Scientific Affairs and director of the PT department’s technical staff, where she oversees the flow of scientific expertise into the Surveys program.

Other awards presented were as follows:

Distinguished Patient Care award, to Charles E. Hill, MD, PhD, for his mentorship, knowledge, and service to pathology and his patients, particularly during the 2014 Ebola outbreak.

Dr. Hill is on staff at Emory University Hospital and Emory University School of Medicine, where he cared for four Ebola patients during the outbreak. He serves as an associate professor of pathology and laboratory medicine, director of the hospital’s molecular diagnostics laboratory, and medical director of the serious communicable diseases unit laboratory.

Distinguished Patient Care award, to Gary W. Procop, MD, MS, for his contributions to patient care as a superb diagnostician and educator, particularly during the Ebola crisis during which time he provided crucial information for the CAP website. As chair of the Microbiology Resource Committee, he acted as a resource for the CAP during that time.

Dr. Procop is medical director, enterprise test utilization and consultative services, and director of molecular microbiology, virology, mycology, and parasitology, Cleveland Clinic. He is a professor of pathology at Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine.

Outstanding Service award, to Edward W. Catalano Jr., MD, for his ongoing service to pathologists, the practice of pathology, and the CAP.

Dr. Catalano is director of laboratory outreach and referral testing at Palmetto Health Richland Hospital in Columbia, SC, and chair of the institutional review boards at Palmetto Health Alliance Hospitals in Columbia. He is also a member of the South Carolina Hospital Association’s board of trustees. For the past two years, Dr. Catalano has served on the CAP’s Curriculum and Practice Management committees.

Distinguished Service award, to Stephen G. Ruby, MD, MBA, for his contributions to pathology through his dedication to the areas of practice leadership and management.

Dr. Ruby is medical director and president of 4path, Ltd., in Burr Ridge, Ill., and president and owner of PPA Group, Ltd., in Palos Heights, Ill. He is the chair and a past vice chair of the CAP’s Practice Management Committee and was a member of the Quality Practices Committee. He serves on the Council on Membership and Professional Development and as a member of the Illinois delegation to the House of Delegates.

Public Service award, to W. Stephen Black-Schaffer, MD, for his accomplishments and dedication to public service and political and civic life.

Dr. Black-Schaffer is vice chair of the Economic Affairs Committee and chair of its payment policy subcommittee. He is also a member of the Policy Roundtable Committee and chair of its workforce and education workgroup.

He is an associate professor in the Department of Pathology at Harvard Medical School and associate chief, residency program director, and a surgical pathologist and cytopathologist at Massachusetts General Hospital.

Resident Advocate award, to Jerad M. Gardner, MD, for his contributions to and support of pathology residents and fellows.

Dr. Gardner was the 2010–2011 chair of the Residents Forum during which time he sat on the Board of Governors for a year. He is the associate editor for emerging technologies and techniques for the editorial board of Archives of Pathology & Laboratory Medicine. Dr. Gardner also serves as the Arkansas delegation chair for the House of Delegates.
He holds dual assistant professorships in the departments of pathology and dermatology, respectively, at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences in Little Rock. He is also the UAMS program director of the dermatopathology fellowship program and clinical co-director of the musculoskeletal/skin module.

Outstanding Communicator award, to Michael J. Misialek, MD, for his work in articulating and demonstrating the value of pathology and knowledge that pathologists bring to health care in serving patients and educating the public.
He serves as a member of the CAP Foundation board of directors, the Council on Membership and Professional Development, PathPAC, and the Personalized Health Care Committee, and as chair of the Massachusetts delegation to the House of Delegates.

Dr. Misialek is associate chair of the Department of Pathology at Newton-Wellesley Hospital, Newton, Mass., and he is the medical director of the chemistry laboratory, point-of-care testing, and the Vernon Cancer Center Laboratory. Dr. Misialek is a clinical assistant professor of anatomic and clinical pathology, Tufts University School of Medicine.

Lifetime Achievement award, to Larry W. Cartmell Sr., MD, for his contributions to the CAP as a researcher, educator, and clinician, during which he demonstrated his commitment to clinical pathology and laboratory medicine.

Dr. Cartmell is chief of anatomic and clinical pathology at Chickasaw Nation Medical Center and Mercy Hospital and the medical director at Mercy Hospital School of Medical Technology, all in Ada, Okla. He is also a research affiliate for the paleobiology laboratory at the University of Minnesota in Duluth and a member of the Cast-iron Coffin Research Team for the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, DC.

Lifetime Achievement award, to Stanley J. Geyer, MD, for his service to and leadership of the Diagnostic Immunology Resource Committee as a member, vice chair, and chair. He led the DIRC’s effort to expand immunology and flow cytometry PT offerings and educational activities.

Dr. Geyer is a pathologist on staff at Indiana (Pa.) Regional Medical Center and at Punxsutawney (Pa.) Area Hospital. He is also laboratory director at Select Laboratory Partners at Advanced Pain Medicine, Wexford, Pa., and principal of Geyer Pathology Services LLC.

Lifetime Achievement award, to Kevin C. Halling, MD, PhD, for his service to the CAP, particularly through his work on the Molecular Oncology Resource Committee, first as a member and then chair in 2009 and 2010. Under Dr. Halling’s guidance, the committee worked to provide proficiency testing for various molecular oncology tests, maintain and improve the molecular pathology checklist, and create online presentations to educate pathologists about molecular pathology.

Dr. Halling holds professional appointments at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn. He is an associate professor of laboratory medicine and pathology and a member of the master’s faculty in clinical and translational science in the Mayo Clinic College of Medicine’s Department of Education Administration. He is vice chair of research and development in the Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology.