American Academy of PAs Announces 2019 Individual Excellence Award Recipients
Contact: Carrie Munk, 571-319-4477, [email protected]
ALEXANDRIA, Va. (April 16, 2019) – The American Academy of PAs is pleased to announce its annual awards to PAs and their colleagues who have distinguished themselves in service to their patients and their communities, and who have been dedicated advocates for the PA (physician assistant) profession.
“We at AAPA are very proud of all of this year’s award recipients and their extraordinary accomplishments,” said Jonathan E. Sobel, DMSc, MBA, PA-C, DFAAPA, FAPACVS, president and chair of the AAPA Board of Directors. “Their work expanding access to care, volunteering, and advancing the PA profession should serve as an inspiration for the entire PA profession.”
The 2019 Individual Excellence Award recipients are:
- Eugene A. Stead Lifetime Achievement Award – Ted Ruback, MS, PA-C Emeritus – Oswego, Oregon
- PA of the Year Award – Matthew Probst, PA-C – Las Vegas, New Mexico
- PA Student of the Year Award – Heidi Rossow – Roanoke, Virginia
- Military Service Award – Colonel David Hamilton, MPH, PA-C – Hope Mills, North Carolina
- AAPA/PAEA Preceptor of the Year Award – Andy Le, MD – Phoenix, Arizona
- AAPA/PAEA Preceptor of the Year Award – Linda Som, MD – Phoenix, Arizona
- Publishing Award – Bettie Coplan, MPAS, PA-C – Phoenix, Arizona
- Outstanding Student Society – Tufts University PA Student Society – Boston, Massachusetts
The Eugene A. Stead Jr. Lifetime Achievement Award is AAPA’s most prestigious, and honors a lifetime of achievement that has a broad and significant impact on the PA profession. 2019 recipient Ted Ruback, MS, PA-C Emeritus, has served the PA profession for 40 years. In 1995, Ruback developed Oregon’s first PA program, at Oregon Health & Science University. He is a former president of the Physician Assistant Education Association (PAEA).
The PA of the Year Award honors a PA who, within the course of a one-year period, demonstrates exemplary service to the community; exemplifies the PA profession’s philosophy of providing accessible, quality healthcare to all; and furthers the image of the profession in a positive, meaningful way. Matthew Probst, PA-C, the 2019 PA of the Year, is the Chief Quality Officer and Medical Director at El Centro Family Health, where he is working to address the opioid epidemic and provide care to an underserved rural population. Probst is one of the subjects of a recent nationally televised documentary, The Providers.
All of the 2019 awards will be presented at AAPA 2019 held May 18-22 in Denver, Colorado. To learn more about the recipients, visit aapa.org.
About the American Academy of PAs
AAPA is the national membership organization for all PAs. PAs are medical professionals who diagnose illness, develop and manage treatment plans, prescribe medications, and often serve as a patient’s principal healthcare provider. Learn more about the profession at aapa.org and engage through Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, Twitter, and Snapchat using the handle @aapaorg.
