The Gorgas Medal was originally established as an annual award in 1915 by the Medical Reserve Corps Association of New York in honor of Surgeon General William C. Gorgas, U.S. Army. The award was based on a writing competition open to members of the U.S. Army Medical Corps, the U.S. Army Medical Reserve Corps, and to Medical Corps members of other “organized militia”. Surgeon General Gorgas appointed Colonel Charles Richard, Lieutenant Colonel Champe C. McCulloch, Jr., and Major Eugene R. Whitmore, Medical Corps, to form a review board and act as judge and jury for the writing competition. These officers were members of the Army Medical School faculty. In 1942, the Gorgas Medal was established by Wyeth Laboratories of

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

to honor Major General

William Crawford Gorgas William Crawford Gorgas Order of St Michael and St George, KCMG (October 3, 1854 – July 3, 1920) was a Medical Corps (United States Army), United States Army physician and 22nd Surgeons General of the United States Army, Surgeon General of the ...

. The award was to be presented annually for ‘distinguished work in preventative medicine’. The award consisted of a Silver Medal, a scroll, and an

honorarium An honorarium is an ''ex gratia'' payment, i.e., a payment made, without the giver recognizing themselves as having any liability or legal obligation, to a person for his or her services in a volunteer capacity or for services for which fees are no ...

of $500. In 2010, the

Association of Military Surgeons of the United States Association may refer to: *Club (organization), an association of two or more people united by a common interest or goal *Trade association, an organization founded and funded by businesses that operate in a specific industry *Voluntary associatio ...

(AMSUS) restructured the awards program and the Gorgas Medal and Prize was no longer awarded. AMSUS took over administering the Gorgas Medal for

Wyeth Wyeth, LLC was an American pharmaceutical company. The company was founded in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in 1860 as ''John Wyeth and Brother''. It was later known, in the early 1930s, as American Home Products, before being renamed to Wyeth in ...

and renamed the award the William Gorgas Preventive Medicine Award.Hume, E. E. (1942). The medals of the United States Army Medical Department and medals honoring army medical officers (No. 98). American Numismatic Society. AMSUS is the Society of Federal Health Professionals. The award was given to an individual for 'distinguished work in preventive medicine, clinical application, education or research'. To be eligible for the award, nominees had to be

veterinarians A veterinarian (vet), also known as a veterinary surgeon or veterinary physician, is a medical professional who practices veterinary medicine. They manage a wide range of health conditions and injuries in non-human animals. Along with this, vet ...

environmental engineers A biophysical environment is a biotic and abiotic surrounding of an organism or population, and consequently includes the factors that have an influence in their survival, development, and evolution. A biophysical environment can vary in scale ...

or sanitation engineers, or from other discipline not from other individual professional award categories from any of the five health agencies represented by AMSUS. The criteria for receiving the award required the individual to have demonstrated accomplishments in accordance with the following objectives:

*Contributions to the eradication, control and/or prevention of disease, including, but not limited to, development of new vaccines and treatment protocols *Educational endeavors leading to a healthier population *Development of modern biological defense medical countermeasures *Development and identification of emerging technologies that may occur during any phase of medical product development from inception through licensure (Recognition may include the full range of technologies on how new products are manufactured, formulated and administered.)

List of Gorgas Medal Awardees by decade

2000s

*2009, Colonel Lisa Keep,

United States Army Medical Corps The Medical Corps (MC) of the U.S. Army is a staff corps (non-combat specialty branch) of the U.S. Army Medical Department (AMEDD) consisting of commissioned medical officers – physicians with either an M.D. or a D.O. degree, at least one ...

*2008, Lieutenant Colonel Rodney L. Coldren, United States Army Medical Corps *2007, Colonel Ralph L. Erickson, United States Army Medical Corps *2006, Captain Sven E. Rodenbeck,

United States Public Health Service The United States Public Health Service (USPHS or PHS) is a collection of agencies of the Department of Health and Human Services concerned with public health, containing nine out of the department's twelve operating divisions. The Assistant ...

*2005, Captain Laurence Reed, United States Public Health Service *2004, Colonel Bonnie L. Smoak, United States Army Medical Corps *2003, Rear Admiral Robert C. Williams, United States Public Health Service *2002, Colonel Raj K. Gupta,

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land warfare, land military branch, service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight Uniformed services of the United States, U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army o ...

Medical Service Corps *2001, Colonel Patrick W. Kelley, United States Army Medical Corps *2000, John D. Hamilton, M.D.,

Veterans Administration The United States Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is a Cabinet-level executive branch department of the federal government charged with providing life-long healthcare services to eligible military veterans at the 170 VA medical centers a ...

1990s

*1999, Captain Frederick Burkle, Jr., MC,

United States Naval Reserve The United States Navy Reserve (USNR), known as the United States Naval Reserve from 1915 to 2005, is the Reserve Component (RC) of the United States Navy. Members of the Navy Reserve, called Reservists, are categorized as being in either the Se ...

*1998, Rear Admiral Douglas B. Kamerow, United States Public Health Service *1997, Colonel Michael W. Benenson, United States Army Medical Corps *1996, Captain Robert N. Hoover, United States Public Health Service *1995, Colonel William H. Bancroft, United States Army Medical Corps *1994, Captain John D. Boice, Jr., United States Public Health Service *1993, Rear Admiral

James O. Mason James Ostermann Mason (June 19, 1930 – October 9, 2019) was an American medical doctor and public health administrator. He was the United States Assistant Secretary for Health (ASH) from 1989 to 1993 and the Acting Surgeon General of the Unite ...

, United States Public Health Service *1992, Captain John Richard Gorham, United States Public Health Service *1991, Captain George James Hill, MC United States Naval Reserve *1990, Colonel Alfred K. Cheng, USAF MC

1980s

*1989, Captain Joseph F. Fraumeni, Jr., United States Public Health Service *1988, Lieutenant Colonel Wilbur Kearse Milhous, MSC United States Army *1987, John Donald Millar, M.D., United States Public Health Service *1986, John V. Bennett, M.D., United States Public Health Service *1985, Colonel Llewellyn J. Legters, United States Army Medical Corps Retired *1984, Lieutenant Colonel Ernest T. Takafuji, United States Army Medical Corps *1983, Colonel George D. Lathrop, USAF MC *1983, Lieutenant Colonel William H. Wolfe, USAF MC *1983, Dr. Richard A. Albanese *1982, Captain Robert Lincoln Kaiser, United States Public Health Service *1981, Captain Eugene G. Rudd, United States Army Medical Corps *1980, Commander Richard R. Hooper, MC USN

1970s

*1979, Colonel Craig J. Canfield, United States Army Medical Corps *1978, Colonel George D. Lathrop, USAF MC *1977, Robert H. Purcell, M.D., United States Public Health Service *1976, Captain George M. Lawton, MC USN *1975, Colonel Phillip K. Russell, United States Army Medical Corps *1974, Martin D. Young,

Sc.D. Doctor of Science ( la, links=no, Scientiae Doctor), usually abbreviated Sc.D., D.Sc., S.D., or D.S., is an academic research degree awarded in a number of countries throughout the world. In some countries, "Doctor of Science" is the degree used f ...

*1973, Captain Charles W. Ochs, MC USN *1972, Dr. Robert M. Chanock, United States Public Health Service *1971, Malcolm S. Artenstein, M.D., United States Army *1970, Colonel Dan Crozier, United States Army Medical Corps

1960s

*1969, Patricia A. Webb, M.D., United States Public Health Service *1968, Samuel W. Simmons, M.D., United States Public Health Service *1967, Captain James R. Kingston, MC USN *1966, Colonel William D. Tigertt, United States Army Medical Corps *1965, Lieutenant Colonel Edward L. Buescher, United States Army Medical Corps *1964, Dr. Harry D. Pratt, United States Public Health Service *1963, Charles C. Shepard, Chief Project Unit, United States Public Health Service *1962, Lieutenant Colonel William S. Gochenour,

United States Army Veterinary Corps The U.S. Army Veterinary Corps is a Staff Officer, staff corps (non-combat specialty branch) of the Army Medical Department (United States), U.S. Army Medical Department (AMEDD) consisting of Officer (armed forces)#Commissioned officers, commis ...

*1961, Dr. James Shaw ( Asst. SG, United States Public Health Service) *1960, Captain David Minard, M.D., Ph.D., Master of Public Health, MC USN

1950s

*1959, Colonel Albert J. Glass, United States Army Medical Corps *1958, Lieutenant Commander John H. Ebersole, M.D., MC USN *1957, Colonel John Paul Stapp, USAF MC *1956, Captain Robert S. Poos, MC USN *1955, Colonel Victor A. Byrnes, USAF MC *1954, Dr. G. Robert Coatney, United States Public Health Service *1953, Colonel Douglas B. Kendricks, Jr., United States Army Medical Corps *1953, Captain Lloyd R. Newhouser, MC USN *1952, Brigadier General James Stevens Simmons, United States Army Retired *1951, Rear Admiral C.S. Stephenson, United States Army Retired *1950, Major General Malcolm C. Grow, United States Air Force Retired

1940s

*1949, Dental Director H. Trendley Dean, United States Public Health Service *1948, Major General

Edgar Erskine Hume Edgar Erskine Hume CBE FRSE MD (26 December 1889 – 24 January 1952) was an American physician, Major General in the U.S Army medical corps, writer and amateur ornithologist. At the time of his retirement from the Army he was the most decorat ...

, United States Army Medical Corps *1947, Major General Paul R. Hawley, United States Army Retired *1946, Brig. General Raymond A. Kelser, United States Army Retired *1945, Captain L.T. Coggeshall, MC USNR *1944, Commander James J. Sapero, MC USN *1943, Surgeon General Hugh S. Cumming, United States Public Health Service Retired *1942, Rear Admiral E.R. Stitt, United States Navy Retired *1942, Brigadier General Jefferson Randolph Kean, United States Army Retired *1942, Brigadier General Frederick Fuller Russell, United States Army Medical Corps, Reserve

References

{{Reflist

External links

Association of Military Surgeons of the United States
Awards established in 1915 Medicine awards Awards established in 1942 1915 establishments in New York (state)