The sixth annual Castle Connolly Medical Ltd. National Physician of the Year Awards took place on Monday evening, March 28, 2011 at the Hudson Theatre at the Millennium Broadway Hotel in New York City.  The Awards recognize and honor five exemplary physicians, as well as the many thousands of other excellent physicians practicing in communities throughout the United States. The evening began at 6:00PM with the awards presentation followed by a cocktail buffet. 

Several awards were given to those who work tirelessly in their respective field of medicine.

·         George P. Canellos, M.D., Senior Physician, Department of Medical Oncology – Dana Farber Cancer Institute and William Rosenberg Professor of Medicine – Harvard Medical School.  Dr.  Canellos has been a leading contributor to the treatment of advanced Hodgkin's disease and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, integrating antibody therapy with cytotoxic agents.

·         Armando E. Giuliano, M.D., FACS, FRCSED, Director, Chief of Science and Medicine – John Wayne Cancer Institute at Saint John’s Health Center.  Dr. Giuliano worked on the development of sentinel node biopsy for breast cancer, which allows surgeons to test for the spread of a malignancy in a breast cancer patient.

·         O. Wayne Isom, M.D., Professor and Chairman, Terry Allen Kramer Professor of Cardiothoracic Surgery – New York-Presbyterian Hospital, Weill Cornell Medical Center.   Dr. Isom has been instrumental in developing bloodless cardiac surgery and is well known for his several celebrity patients including Larry King and David Letterman.

The National Health Leadership Award is awarded to a non-physician whose tireless work with an organization has heightened the awareness for the need of support and research for that specific cause.  Mrs. Evelyn H. Lauder, Senior Corporate Vice President of The Estee Lauder Companies Inc. and Founder and Chairman of The Breast Cancer Research Foundation®, received this year’s National Health Leadership Award.  Mrs. Lauder has radically raised the awareness of breast cancer, treatment and the need for regular and early examinations throughout the world.  She has also helped establish the Evelyn H. Lauder Breast Center at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York City.  

John K. Castle, Chairman, and John J. Connolly, Ed.D., President and CEO, of Castle Connolly Medical Ltd.  William Liss-Levinson, Ph.D., Vice President, Chief Strategy & Operations Officer, Castle Connolly Medical Ltd. and Jean Morgan, M.D., Vice President, Chief Medical & Research Officer, Castle Connolly Medical Ltd. were among the Awards Presenters for the evening.  Robin Elliott, Executive Director of the Parkinson’s Disease Foundation, was the Master of Ceremonies. 

About the National Physician of the Year Awards

Each year, Castle Connolly Medical Ltd. receives thousands of nominations from physicians and the medical leadership of major medical centers, specialty hospitals, teaching hospitals as well as regional and community medical centers across the United States as an integral part of our research, screening and selection process to identify America’s Top Doctors®. The selected physicians, while located in all 50 states and involved in more than 70 medical specialties and subspecialties, all share one distinguishing professional attribute: an unwavering dedication to their patients and to medicine as a whole. Each and every one of these outstanding medical professionals is a symbol of the clinical excellence that characterizes American medicine. In honor of these outstanding physicians, as well as the many thousands of other excellent physicians practicing in communities throughout the United States, Castle Connolly Medical Ltd. created the National Physician of the Year Awards.

About Castle Connolly Medical Ltd.

Castle Connolly Medical Ltd. is America’s trusted source for identifying top doctors.  Founded in 1991 by John K. Castle, (Chairman) and John J. Connolly, Ed.D. (President and CEO), who served as board chairman, and president and CEO of New York Medical College, respectively, its mission is to help consumers find the best healthcare.  They achieve that mission through their consumer books – such as America’s Top Doctors® – their web site and various consumer and business-oriented print and online partnerships.  Under the direction of its physician-lead research team, Castle Connolly surveys tens of thousands of physicians and hospital executives in order to identify, screen and, ultimately, select those physicians regarded by their peers as leaders - among the very best – in their specialties and for specific diseases and techniques.  The members of the management team include Jean Morgan, M.D., Vice-President, Chief Medical & Research Officer and William Liss-Levinson, Ph.D., Vice-President, Chief Strategy & Operations Officer. Castle Connolly’s valuable top doctors information can also be found online at www.castleconnolly.com.