Congratulations to Recipients of our 2019 KCMS Awards!
Jim Braibish • September 19, 2019
The Medical Society is pleased to announce the recipients of our 2019 KCMS Awards. The honors were presented at the Medical Society Annual Meeting on Thursday, September 26.
Lifetime Achievement Award: Charles B. Wheeler, Jr., MD
Former mayor of Kansas City and a third-generation physician.
Friend of Medicine Award: Patrick B. (Rusty) Ryan, PharmD
Longtime faculty member in the Department of Community and Family Medicine at the University of Missouri-Kansas City and member of the Kansas City Medical Society Retired Physicians Organization.
Member Awards:
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- Rising Star Award: Carole E. Freiberger-O’Keefe, DO, critical care intensivist at Saint Luke’s Hospital of Kansas City and board member since 2012 of the Kansas City Medical Society.
- Patient and Community Advocate Award: Peter J. Graves, MD, and Leland Graves, III, MD, of the University of Kansas Medical Center, for their donated treatment of a cancer patient through the Kansas City Medical Society’s Wy Jo Care program.
- Innovation Award: Nathan D. Granger, MD, MBA, of Clay-Platte Family Medicine Clinic and founder of the Kansas City Metropolitan Physician Association and the KCMPA-ACO, and board member of Centrus Health of Kansas City.
- Community Service Award: JayDoc Free Clinic, of Kansas City, Kansas, which provides free primary and specialty care to low income, underserved residents of the Kansas City area; the clinic is managed and staffed by medical students.
- Exemplary Leadership Award: James L. Vacek, MD, MS, of the University of Kansas Medical Center, for his leadership in patient care, teaching and research in the field of cardiology in Kansas City.
Congratulations to our 2019 honorees!
I consider it a sincere honor to serve as president of the Kansas City Medical Society this year. As we look forward to this new year, we celebrate our previous accomplishments and look for new ways to meet the challenges of our ever-changing healthcare environment. As we recognize our recent successes, I want to take the opportunity to thank Dr. Greg Unruh, our immediate past president, for his excellent leadership, and I look forward to his continued partnership, providing much-needed wisdom and experience to our board of directors as well as a leadership council. I am also deeply appreciative of Micah Flint, our executive director, now in his third year with the Society. As a board, we are prioritizing key areas where we believe the Society can make a difference for physicians and the communities we serve. With this in mind, we will continue our focus on wellness, advocacy, and expand our opportunities for in person social and educational gatherings. Our journal connects us in a variety of valuable ways, and we will continue its publication and expand its distribution. Under the directorship of Karole Bradford, the Society’s Foundation continues to do invaluable work. We celebrate those accomplishments and the charitable care they provide to our community’s vulnerable population. We are grateful for our individual members and corporate sponsors and welcome your suggestions of how the Society can best serve physicians and our community. Please mark your calendar for the Society’s upcoming events and consider inviting physician colleagues to join you as we gather to learn and support one another.
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