Please join ACEP in congratulating the 2014 recipients of the College’s most prestigious awards, who were recognized this October at ACEP14 in Chicago.

Leadership Award Recipients

Outstanding Contribution in Research Award
Lance B. Becker, MD, FACEP
Dr. Becker has pioneered life-saving innovations in resuscitation for more than 25 years. He is professor of emergency medicine and founder and director of the Center for Resuscitation Science in the Department of Emergency Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia. He is a powerful advocate for resuscitation studies, securing funding and encouraging international collaboration. One of the field’s most productive and highly cited researchers, Dr. Becker shares his findings in countless lectures and peer-reviewed publications. Dr. Becker founded the center in 2006 to translate basic science into real-world improvements in care. His team’s work on the use of automated external defibrillators in public settings led to placement of the devices in airports nationwide.

Honorary Membership Award
Phyllis L. Edans, CPA, CAE
As chief financial officer, Ms. Edans kept ACEP’s fiscal house in order for more than 27 years. Dedicated to excellence and committed to the mission of emergency medicine, she helped ACEP experience tremendous growth in areas dependent on stellar financial performance. From membership, the annual budget, members’ equity, and the investment portfolio to NEMPAC, the Emergency Medicine Foundation, and more, she was a trusted manager and advisor on significant decisions that shaped the College’s future. One of her first successes was creating a comprehensive financial compendium that still guides the Board of Director’s annual review of fiscal policy.

Outstanding Contribution in EMS Award
Marianne Gausche-Hill, MD, FACEP
Dr. Gausche-Hill has labored tirelessly for nearly three decades to improve prehospital care for children and adults both at home and around the world. She is professor of clinical medicine and pediatrics at the David Geffen School of Medicine at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) and vice chair and chief of the division of pediatric emergency medicine and director of pediatric emergency medicine and EMS fellowships in the department of emergency medicine at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center. She is the cocreator of numerous influential courses, director of research projects, and author of hundreds of publications. She is an active champion for EMS delivery and development locally, nationally, and internationally.

John G. Wiegenstein Leadership Award
J. Brian Hancock, MD, FACEP
Dr. Hancock has served his patients and ACEP with excellence for decades. Dr. Hancock is chief medical officer for the Department of Veterans Affairs’ Veterans Integrated Service Network 11 in Ann Arbor, Michigan, caring for veterans in central Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, and northwest Ohio. Born in Evanston, Illinois, and raised in Chicago, Dr. Hancock was a talented classical pianist, but he knew at age 16 that he wanted to be a physician. He completed undergraduate studies at Northwestern University and medical school at Rush Medical College, both in Chicago. Dr. Hancock became a Councillor for the Michigan College of Emergency Physicians early in his career. He went on to hold every national College office, culminating in a dynamic and productive term as President from 2003 to 2004.