College Hosts 24th Michael Grossman Academic Excellence Day Virtually

The 24^th annual Michael Grossman Academic Excellence Day, which took place virtually from May 4-7, is an opportunity for the University of Arizona College of Medicine – Phoenix community to come together to focus on the clinical and bench research being done by residents, fellows, medical students, graduate students, clinical allied health staff and physician staff from seven Phoenix-area hospitals.

“The virtual format allowed individuals from all over the city to see the posters and presentations at a time and place that was flexible for them,” said Cheryl O'Malley, MD, associate dean of Graduate Medical Education at the U of A College of Medicine – Phoenix. “We are grateful that so many residents and fellows took time to share their work, so we can all learn from it.”

The event included 120 poster presentations and 23 oral presentations. Participating hospitals included Banner – University Medical Center Phoenix, Abrazo Health, Barrow Neurological Institute, the Creighton Academic Alliance and Phoenix Children’s Hospital. Forty-six judges reviewed the 109 submissions and selected the winners from a very competitive pool.

“This year the 24^th AED was held in a virtual format with posters and narrated oral presentations being available via the website,” said Steven Lieberman, MD, senior associate dean of Academic Affairs. “While we lost the in-person connection, we were still able to celebrate and honor the mission of the Michael Grossman Academic Excellence Day. We greatly appreciate the efforts of all of the house staff, our institutional partners, and the judges and staff who made this a successful event.”

Academic Excellence Day started nearly 24 years ago under the direction of Michael Grossman, MD, professor emeritus at the U of A College of Medicine – Phoenix, for whom the event is now named. He said that the concept started as a way to gather all of the community teaching programs across the Valley and encourage residents to conduct research and present their findings.

Richard Gerkin, MD, who is an associate professor in the Department of Internal Medicine at the college and medical director of Graduate Medical Education Research at Banner – University Medical Center Phoenix, moderated the event.

“The 2020 Michael T. Grossman Academic Excellence Day was successful, despite the challenges of a virtual meeting,” Dr. Gerkin said. “We are grateful for our volunteer judges who were able to determine the 18 award winners. We again, thank the planning committee and MICA for their support in making this another successful year.”

Winners from this event have been provided prize money funded from the generous contribution from the MICA Medical Foundation.

“The MICA Medical Foundation is proud to sponsor the College of Medicine – Phoenix and its Academic Excellence Day,” said Amy A. Silverthorn, MD, chair of the MICA Medical Foundation. “The foundation’s mission is to support physician education and training, medical care delivery research and improved patient outcomes in the communities they serve. We recognize the dedication of the University of Arizona College of Medicine – Phoenix and its educators to preparing students for careers in medicine and are honored to contribute to their efforts.”

Winners

Academic Excellence Day was sponsored by the Mutual Insurance Company of Arizona.