Dr. Daniel Ledbetter Runner-Up for AAMC Humanism in Medicine Nomination
Every year, the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) honors a medical school faculty physician who exemplifies the qualities of a caring and compassionate mentor in the teaching and advising of medical students. The Arnold P. Gold Foundation Humanism in Medicine Award, administered through the Organization of Student Representatives (OSR), is awarded to one physician faculty nationwide each year.
Dr. Daniel Ledbetter, Professor, Pediatric General Surgery at Seattle Children’s Hospital, was a runner-up for University of Washington’s School of Medicine (UW SOM) nomination. This year the UW SOM received nominations for over 50 faculty—it is truly an honor to be selected as a runner-up. Some of the students who nominated him shared:
“Dr. Ledbetter is the first doctor who has made me feel confident enough to be involved in making decisions at the bedside of a patient, he takes the time to be patient when asking for possible answers or ideas, and when they are wrong finds a way to still make me feel like I can try again next time.”
“Dr. Ledbetter has been the most important teacher I’ve had during my medical school education. He teaches us patient care while exemplifying great bed side manner. [He] creates a caring environment for us to develop our clinical medicine skills. He teaches us things no book can… how to talk to patients and how to do it well.”
“Dr. Ledbetter is a great mentor that creates a very safe space for learning and builds collaboration amongst his students. He is very knowledgeable and teaches by example, often pushing us so we can see how much we have learned. He provides very helpful feedback for improvement and helps us determine realistic goals to reach as we go through ICM2.”
The Department of Surgery congratulates and thanks Dr. Ledbetter for his continued support of humanism in medicine at UW. The entire UW-WWAMI community benefits from his dedication to service, mentorship, and high-quality clinical practice.