The NBME is pleased to announce that John J. Norcini, PhD was selected as the recipient of the 2009 John P. Hubbard Award. The award is given to individuals who have made outstanding contributions to the pursuit of excellence in the field of evaluation in medicine. Ruth-Marie E. Fincher, MD, Chair of the 2009 Hubbard Award Committee, announced Dr. Norcini’s selection at the Annual Meeting of the NBME Membership on March 26, 2009.
In announcing the award recipient, Dr. Fincher stated: “John Norcini has made exceptional contributions to the field of measurement and evaluation in both medical education and education in general. John’s outstanding scholarship, world-class reputation as a researcher and educator, magnitude of contributions, and longstanding involvement in the field of assessment are unparalleled. John has an outstanding record of fostering the development of evaluation methods and measurement techniques. He was one of the first scholars to show a link between certification results and patient outcomes in practice. He discredited the use of essays as a reliable assessment method.
“Dr. Norcini was a pioneer in developing the mini clinical examination exercise for assessing clinical skills, a peer-assessment tool (mini-PAT), and the concept of work-based assessment. The breadth of his research and development activities includes topics such as standard setting, scoring and rating methods, certification and recertification, item formats, item modeling, gender differences, written and computer-based examinations, essays, predictors of performance, standardized examinations, sources of measurement error, generalizability studies, score reproducibility, item response theory, testing time requirements, performance of foreign medical graduates, language proficiency, measurement of humanistic qualities and professionalism, cut scores and pass/fail decisions, performance and levels of expertise, profiles of clinical competence, performance feedback, and indicators of residency program performance. John is an accomplished and prolific scholar with at least 144 publications in a wide variety of journals, 16 book chapters, and 142 invited presentations and workshops that cover a wide range of topics in measurement and evaluation. These accomplishments are a testimony to the breadth and depth of his talent in the field. His review articles regarding methods of criterion-referenced assessment and standard setting have defined the field, and he is in much demand internationally for his expertise in this area.
“John is a talented mentor and international promoter of medical education and evaluation, as exemplified by his work with the FAIMER institute. His tireless work to create critical masses of educational scholarship throughout the world is a very demanding job, with enormous travel demands, and really reflects a degree of altruism that is unmatched in our field.
“Colleagues describe John as a ‘giant’ in the field of medical evaluation. They note, ‘Throughout this fantastic career, Dr. Norcini was a tireless developer, a bold innovator, a ferocious number cruncher, a prolific scholar, and most of all, a gentleman. There is no one more deserving of the Hubbard Award than John Norcini. He is a renaissance man of measurement and evaluation. Many of us work on specific areas of measurement. Few have the breadth and depth that Dr. Norcini has. He is one of a handful of psychometricians worldwide who truly knows the field inside out. It is difficult to think of anyone who is more deserving of the Hubbard Award. He is the epitome of the qualities enshrined in the Hubbard Awardees.’”
Dr. Norcini became the first President and Chief Executive Officer of the Foundation for Advancement of International Medical Education and Research in May 2002. Prior to joining FAIMER, he was Director of Psychometrics and Executive Vice President for Evaluation and Research at the American Board of Internal Medicine.
The NBME established the John P. Hubbard Award in 1983 in special tribute to the late John P. Hubbard, MD. Honoring Dr. Hubbard as a principal, guiding force of the NBME, this award acknowledges his creative and inspired leadership of the organization during his 25-year tenure as its chief executive. Dr. Norcini deservedly joins the ranks of the distinguished individuals whom the NBME has honored over the years with this prestigious award.
Dr. Norcini’s selection as the recipient followed a call for nominations published widely in the spring of 2008. The 2009 Hubbard Award Committee, chaired by Ruth-Marie E. Fincher, MD, included as members Lynn M. Cleary, MD, Antoinette F. Hood, MD, Glenn Regehr, PhD, Carol Morrison, PhD, and Susan M. Spaulding.
Posted March 31, 2009