February 2, 2001

Tessa Goldsmith, MS

Colleen Ryan, MD

The Nathaniel Bowditch Award was created to recognize those who have made significant contributions to improving quality care while reducing costs. This week, two members of the MGH received the honor at an event launching the new award. The winners, chosen from more than 30 nominees, were Tessa Goldsmith, MS, CCC/SLP, of Speech-Language Pathology, and Colleen Ryan, MD, of the Burn and Trauma Service. Each received an award certificate and a check for $5,000.

Andrew L. Warshaw, MD, surgeon-in-chief, chaired the selection committee. "The committee had a very difficult time selecting a winner for this award. Originally the award was designed to recognize a single individual who had made significant contributions, but the competition was so tight that we decided to award two of those nominated." Carmen Vega-Barachowitz, director of Speech-Language Pathology, nominated Goldsmith for her work in designing and implementing a protocol for a procedure that evaluates patients who have difficulties in swallowing. Ryan was nominated by John Burke, MD, former chief of the Burn and Trauma Service, for her work incorporating a new type of artificial skin into the burn unit's practices.

Warshaw recognized and congratulated each nominee, and presented each with a certificate. James J. Mongan, MD, president of the MGH, Peter Slavin, MD, CEO and chairman of the Massachusetts General Physicians Organization, and Edward Lawrence, chairman of the MGH Board of Trustees, also spoke at the event.

The award was established by Charles and Nancy Munger through the Alfred C. Munger Foundation to honor Nathaniel Bowditch (1773-1838), a pioneer in celestial navigation. Bowditch had two sons who were important figures in the history of the MGH. Nathaniel Ingersoll Bowditch served for several years as a trustee, as both a chairman and vice president of the MGH Corporation. He also was responsible for writing the first volume of the MGH's history. His brother, Henry, was a house officer at the MGH in 1932 and became a pioneer in the treatment of chest diseases.