The spirit of giving filled the Center for Advanced Medicine lobby atrium on the evening of September 15, 2009 as major donors to the Barnes-Jewish Hospital Foundation gathered to be recognized for their commitment and to honor one of America’s finest surgeons.

Alec Patterson, MD, the Evarts A. Graham Professor of Surgery and the Chief of the Division of Cardiothoracic Surgery for Washington University School of Medicine, accepted the President’s Lifetime Achievement Award during the Foundation’s annual Celebrate Giving dinner. An innovator in lung transplantation, lung volume reduction surgery for emphysema and other areas of cardiothoracic surgery, Dr. Patterson was selected for his outstanding leadership, teaching, patient care and impact on his field at Barnes-Jewish and around the world.

A graduate of Queen’s University in Kingston, Ontario, where he was Chief Resident of the Department of Surgery, Dr. Patterson joined the Washington University lung transplant team in 1991 and helped to build it into one of the most respected and accomplished lung transplant centers. He has trained 35 graduate students, held more than 25 major research grants, and co-authored or edited more than 400 publications to date.   

In presenting the award, Barnes-Jewish Hospital President Rich Liekweg shared a testimonial by Joy Williamson. A former patient who traveled from Connecticut for Dr. Patterson’s care, Williamson wrote, “Dr. Patterson and his team have given new life to hundreds of end-of-life patients like me. All of us now have the opportunity to see new grandchildren born, and to see others go off to college. Dr. Patterson is not only a brilliant surgeon and a perfectionist, but he has also inspired other doctors to see and care for the whole patient.” 

In his acceptance remarks, Dr. Patterson explained how gifts to the Foundation are helping his team to advance medicine. 

“Every single investigator in our group who has funding from the National Institutes of Health received start up and bridge funding from the Barnes-Jewish Hospital Foundation,” Patterson said, “And I assure you that we’re making new progress every single day in the understanding of fatal lung and heart diseases as a result of that support.  What you give is critically important not only to cardiothoracic disease, but to the entire spectrum of programs at Washington University and Barnes-Jewish Hospital.”

Rounding out Celebrate Giving was former patient Kathy Ferrara, who spoke about her battle with colon cancer and the clinical trial for genetic screening available at Siteman Cancer Center—and nowhere else in St. Louis—that permitted her to prevent a reoccurrence that could have ended her life. She thanked the audience for supporting the shared research enterprise of Barnes-Jewish and Washington University that “gave her more time with her children.”

Foundation Vice President Julia S. Ruvelson also recognized the recipients of the Foundation’s 2009 Clinical-Translational Research Grants, the Dorismae and Harvey Friedman Research on Aging Award, the Ruth and Sam Hacker Graduate Nursing Research Fellowship in Aging, and the Alene and Meyer Kopolow Award for Geriatrics, Psychiatry and Neurology.             

“Every day, because of your gifts, the Foundation is able to touch lives in personal, meaningful ways. Sometimes, this means fulfilling our hospital’s commitment to advancing clinical research and translating our findings to the patient’s bedside,” Ruvelson said.  

Last year, the Foundation awarded $17.9 million in grants to advance the hospital’s core mission of excellence in patient care, teaching and research. 

“Every gift that you give to help us achieve innovation, improve service delivery, educate healthcare providers and lead the nation in best practices for safety and quality is important because the patient is at the center of everything we do,” said Liekweg.