With more than 400 people in attendance at the Kravis Center’s Cohen Pavilion, the Palm Beach County Medical Society honored 39 extraordinary men, women and organizations at the 16th annual Heroes in Medicine luncheon on Friday, May 17.
Individuals and organizations in healthcare that provide outstanding service to meet needs of people in local, national and/or global communities were recognized. Dr. Shawn Baca of Rheumatology Associates of South Florida and nurse practitioner Colleen Haley of Team Health received the Hero in Medicine of the Year awards.
The 2019 Heroes in Medicine honorees were:
Bruce Rendina Professional Hero — Madelyn Christopher, Darcy Davis, Lisa Rocheleau and Dr. Michelle Lizotte Waniewski.
College/Medical Student Hero — Jordyn Cohen, Leah Hellerstein and Rachael Silverberg.
Community Organization Hero — Kaye Communications, Kayla Cares 4 Kids, Pediatric Interest Group, Quantum House and Smith Smiles Toy Donations/Smith Smiles Inc.
Healthcare Educator Hero — Dr. Susan MacLeod Dyess, Dr. Rhonda Goodman, Dr. Mary Labanowski and Stephanie Stiepleman.
Healthcare Innovation Hero — Business Development Board-Palm Beach Life Sciences Cluster.
Healthcare Provider Hero — Colleen Haley, Diane Schofield and Raymond Zelhof.
High School Student Hero — Rachel Bailey, Gabriela Carrazana and Joshua Alexander Timmer.
Outreach Wellness Prevention Hero — Maureen Budjinski, Dr. Barbara Golden, Dr. Mario Jacomino, Rob Moreland and Student Nurses Association.
Physician Hero — Dr. Belma Andric, Dr. Shawn Baca, Dr. Jose Castaneda, Dr. Robert Chait, Dr. Leonard Hock Jr. and Dr. Ruel Stoessel.
Project Access Hero — Palm Beach Radiology Group, Dr. Donald Goodwin, Dr. Walter Forman, Dr. Fred Muhletaler-Maggiolo, West Boca Medical Center and DCA for Health Inc.
Lifetime Achievement — Dr. Jack Zeltzer.
John Dalton of Optimum RTS served as chair and Gregory Cotes of St. Mary’s Medical Center and Judy Dunn of CareerSource served as co-chairs. Dr. Alan Pillersdorf served as honorary chair, and Rendina Healthcare Real Estate was the founding and presenting sponsors. Proceeds support Project Access of the Palm Beach County Medical Society, which provides pro bono care to uninsured children and adults.
