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Date: March 18, 2009 UMDNJ-Robert Wood Johnson Medical School
For more information, please contact: Dina Lindenberg Contact: Jennifer Forbes
dina.lindenberg@ama-assn.org Communications & Public Affairs
(312) 464-4193 Phone:732-235-6356
Email: jenn.forbes@umdnj.edu
AMA Foundation honors New Jersey medical student as an outstanding leader in medicine
(Chicago) – Erica Dommasch, from Hamilton, New Jersey, has been named a recipient of the American Medical Association (AMA)Foundation’s 2009 Leadership Award. This award provides medical students, residents/fellows and early career physicians from around the country with special training to develop their skills as future leaders in organized medicine and community affairs.
The AMA Foundation honored 30 individuals with the award at its annual Excellence in Medicine Awards ceremony on March 9 in Washington D.C. Presented in association with Pfizer, Inc, recipients of the award are recognized for demonstrating outstanding non-clinical leadership skills in advocacy, community service and education.
Erica Dommasch is a fourth-year medical student at UMDNJ-Robert Wood Johnson Medical School in New Brunswick, N.J. She has served more than two years on the board of trustees of the Medical Society of New Jersey (MSNJ), two years as delegate and alternate delegate to the AMA House of Delegates and as chair of her local AMA chapter. Recognizing the impact that medical students will have on the future of health care, she helped found the MSNJ Medical Student Section and also worked to formally integrate health policy education into her medical school's curriculum. Ms. Dommasch is a summa cum laude graduate of New York University with a degree in psychology. She enjoys traveling, and has studied abroad in Paris and has participated in medical outreach endeavors in Kenya. At present, she is at the University of Pennsylvania completing a year of clinical and epidemiological research in dermatology.
“Through actions such as leading a free clinic, changing health policy, conducting cutting-edge research or volunteering on a global level, these men and women have shown tremendous potential for joining the next generation of medical leaders,” said Jean Howard, president of the AMA Foundation. “I am confident that these outstanding individuals will provide the necessary leadership to improve health care delivery in our country.”
As the philanthropic arm of the American Medical Association, the AMA Foundation is committed to supporting programs in medical education and public health. For more information, please visit www.amafoundation.org or call (312) 464-4200.
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