UF Health Jacksonville Honors 2023 Awardees for Patient Safety Efforts

UF Health Jacksonville today awarded six recipients for their patient safety efforts across the world with the 2023 Robert Wears Patient Safety Award.

The award is named in honor of Robert L. Wears, M.D., MS, PhD, for his pioneering work to improve patient safety. Dr. Wears was an emergency medicine physician in the UF College of Medicine – Jacksonville for nearly three decades and transformed patient safety research. The award honors winners in four categories who have significantly impacted the field of patient safety through critical analysis, research, education or knowledge dissemination.

“Dr. Wears’ work in patient safety made an incredible impact, and those honored with this award in his name have continued that legacy,” said Steven A. Godwin, M.D., FACEP, chair of the Department of Emergency Medicine at UF Health Jacksonville. “Congratulations to all of our esteemed winners for their passion, dedication and leadership in patient safety. Their work is crucial to improving patient outcomes and creating a safer healthcare system around the world.”

This year’s winners, awarded at a virtual awards presentation today, are:

Individual:

Dr. Kathryn Kellogg, VP of Patient Safety & Infection Prevention, MedStar Health, Maryland

Joe Kiani, Founder, Patient Safety Movement Foundation and Founder, Chairman and CEO, Masimo, California

Organization:

Dr. Saravana Kumar (India) and the International Federation of Emergency Medicine and Quality/Patient Safety Special Interest Group

Team:

Dr. David Nash and Charles Wohlforth, Pennsylvania

Volunteer:

Anna Palmisano, M.D., Maryland

Dr. Wears provided mentorship and guidance to an array of healthcare providers pursuing careers in safety science, and during his long career served on the editorial boards of 10 major medical and patient safety journals and was a reviewer for dozens more. The award named in his honor was established in 2018 to single out health care professionals who significantly impact the field of patient safety though critical analysis, research, education or knowledge dissemination.

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