Physician-educators earn recognitions

Education leaders recognized by ACP

Brandon Dickey, MD, FACP, the program director of the internal medicine residency program at Indiana University Health Ball Memorial Hospital, earned the prestigious Laureate Award from the Indiana chapter of the American College of Physicians.

According to the organization’s website, the Laureate Award recognizes fellows to the ACP who have “demonstrated by their example and conduct an abiding commitment to excellence in medical care, education or research, and service to the community and the American College of Physicians.”

It is the highest award the organization gives to a chapter member.

Dickey is an associate professor in the Department of Medicine. He is a celebrated physician-educator with more than 20 years of experience in internal medicine. He has served as director of the internal medicine residency program in Muncie since 2019. He was the associate program director for 12 years prior to assuming the top job.

Dickey is a native of Anderson, Indiana, and is a Hoosier through and through.

He earned his undergraduate degree at IU Bloomington and completed his medical degree through Indiana University School of Medicine’s Muncie campus. After finishing his internal medicine residency at IU Health Ball Memorial Hospital, he was hired as the Ball Internal Medicine Residency ambulatory clinic director in 2007.

Dickey has held several other leadership roles within the department and school.

He serves as both regional site leader for the internal medicine clerkship and director of Fundamentals of Clinical Practice for IU School of Medicine-Muncie. He has also been chairman of the Ball Medical Executive Committee and is currently Vice Chair of the Ball Medicine Department. He has been involved in the American College of Physicians for many years.

In 2017, he was awarded an Indiana University Trustees’ Teaching Award. He is a frequent speaker at various community functions and patient education groups.

Five other faculty members from the Department of Medicine faculty were also honored by the chapter for their dedication to medicine and medical education.

LeeAnn Cox, MD, was given the Alex Djuricich Award for Excellence in Education. The winner of the Djuricich Award is an extraordinary medical educator who is dedicated to advancing future internal medicine physicians and exemplifies talent, enthusiasm, and professionalism in medical education, according to the ACP.

Jennifer Hur, MD, and Amy Munchhof, MD, were co-recipients for the Outstanding Women Physician of the Year award. The ACP presents this honor to female physicians “with a distinguished career in areas of exceptional patient care, medical education or research.”

Each faculty members recognized by the Indiana ACP holds various leadership positions at IU School of Medicine.

In addition to her clinical work at the Richard L. Roudebush VA Center, Cox is the Statewide Internal Medicine Clerkship Director. She was part of a first-of-its-kind, 20-year, multicenter study of former chief residents from diverse academic internal medicine residency programs to describe trends in gender, type of positions, and subsequent career choices.

Hur is the Program Director for the Internal Medicine Residency Program in Indianapolis. Her clinical research interests include preoperative medical assessments and risk assessment for the geriatric surgical population. She is a local authority on the subject, and she shares her expertise with residents and colleagues.

Munchhof is an associate program director of the combined Internal Medicine-Pediatrics Residency Program. Her work as an academic hospitalist at the Sidney and Lois Eskenazi Hospital gives her the chance to combine her passion of caring for hospitalized patients while teaching residents and students.

Bradley Sutter, MD, was given the chapter’s Lifetime Achievement Award. This accolade goes to a long-standing member of the ACP Indiana chapter and a distinguished physician who has made significant contributions to the field of internal medicine throughout their career, according to the group’s website.

Sutter is an adjunct clinical assistant professor in the Department of Medicine. He is a respected hospitalist, working for IU Health and at the Richard L. Roudebush VA Medical Center for more than 20 years, and training Indiana University School of Medicine fellows and residents for more than 30 years.

In 2023, the Indianapolis Coalition for Patient Safety named Sutter a Patient Safety Hero; and Indiana University Health Physicians gave him the President’s Values Leadership Award, which is one of the highest honors awarded by the physician’s network.

Bradley Allen, MD, was awarded a mastership recognition – the highest honor given to an ACP member.

“Individuals elected to Mastership must demonstrate excellence and significance of their contributions to ACP and the science and art of medicine in areas such as research, education, health care initiatives, volunteerism, and administrative positions,” according to the group’s website.

Allen is a professor of clinical medicine with an interest in endocarditis and endovascular infections.

He is the D. Craig Brater Professor of Professionalism and is serving as the interim Executive Associate Dean for Educational Affairs.

Two adjunct faculty members in the Department of Medicine were also recognized: Katherine Palmisano, MD, was given the Outstanding Early Career Physician Award; and Oksana Karpov, DO, was named a new chapter fellow.