The National Board of Medical Examiners® (NBME) is pleased to announce the recipient of the 2018 John P. Hubbard Award for excellence in the field of evaluation in medicine. This year’s recipient is Louis N. Pangaro, MD, professor and chairman for the Department of Medicine at the F. Edward Hébert School of Medicine and Uniformed Services University of Health Sciences (USU) in Bethesda, Maryland.
The Hubbard Award is given annually to individuals for their outstanding contributions to the pursuit of excellence in the assessment of medical education and delivery of healthcare. Peter G. Anderson, DVM, PhD, chair of the 2018 Hubbard Award Committee, announced Dr. Pangaro’s selection at the annual meeting of the NBME membership on March 22, 2018.
In presenting the award, Dr. Anderson stated “Dr. Pangaro has a distinguished and ongoing reputation of excellence, with national and international contributions to the assessment of professional competence and educational program development across the continuum of medical education. There are few people who have had such a broad impact both in terms of contributions to medical education but also to the professional development of many current leaders in medical education. Dr. Pangaro has demonstrated outstanding achievement in all domains considered for the John P. Hubbard Award throughout his remarkable career.”
Past Hubbard Award recipient and colleague, Dr. Larry Gruppen, commented on Dr. Pangaro’s leadership as well as his work. “What I, personally, admire most in Lou is his ability to clarify the constructs and frameworks that underlie the assessment and evaluation practices and research. He knows that words matter and that precision in defining and using these words is critical to advancing and promoting clear communication within the community. In short, Dr. Pangaro is the prototype of a scholar, leader, and master in medical education.”
In addition to his service at USU, Dr. Pangaro has provided leadership to the Clerkship Directors in Internal Medicine, earning each of its awards, Outstanding Service, Outstanding Educational Program Development, and Outstanding Educational Research. He has been very active in the Alliance for Clinical Education, and in the education branches of both the American Association of Medical Colleges and the American College of Physicians. NBME has been fortunate to have Dr. Pangaro’s expertise as a member-at-large where he has made an impact on many projects and committees, including the Stemmler Fund grants program, the Center for Innovation, and the United States Medical Licensing Examination® (USMLE®) test development and other committees. NBME honored him for these contributions by granting him the Edith J. Levitt Distinguished Service Award in 2013.
The NBME established the 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. Pangaro deservedly joins the ranks of the distinguished individuals whom the NBME has honored over the years with this prestigious award. His selection as the recipient followed a call for nominations published widely in the spring of 2017. The 2018 Hubbard Award Committee, chaired by Peter G. Anderson, DVM, PhD, included as members Eric S. Holmboe, MD; Joseph P. Grande, MD, PhD; Brian D. Hodges, MD, PhD, MED; Alex J. Mechaber, MD; and Melissa Margolis, PhD.
