Newswise — WASHINGTON (Oct. 16, 2017) -- The National Academy of Medicine announced today the election of Mark Dybul, MD, professor of medicine at Georgetown University School of Medicine, as one of its newest member.  Dybul is faculty co-director of the Center for Global Health and Quality at Georgetown University Medical Center.

Election to the Academy is considered one of the highest honors in the fields of health and medicine and recognizes individuals who have demonstrated outstanding professional achievement and commitment to service.  Dybul is one of 70 new members elected this year. 

“Your election reflects the high esteem in which your peers and colleagues regard you,” said National Academy of Medicine President Victor J. Dzau in a letter to Dybul. “As an NAM member, you are now part of a group of truly distinguished individuals who have made important contributions to health, medicine, and science.”

Dybul, has worked on HIV and public health for more than 25 years as a clinician, scientist, teacher, and administrator, most recently as the executive director of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria. He returned to Georgetown in July.

“I’m honored to join such a talented and devoted group of colleagues,” says Dybul. “Being elected to the Academy is an honor that carries with it great responsibility.  I intend to bring my dedication to whatever needs come before us.”

According to the Academy, “new members are elected by current active members through a selective process that recognizes individuals who have made major contributions to the advancement of the medical sciences, health care, and public health.” 

Established originally as the Institute of Medicine in 1970 by the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Medicine addresses critical issues in health, science, medicine, and related policy and inspires positive actions across sectors. 

Dybul graduated from the Georgetown college in 1985 and earned his MD at Georgetown in 1992. He began his work in HIV research as a fellow at the National Institute for Allergy and Infectious Diseases under the direction of its director, Anthony Fauci, MD. There, Dybul conducted basic and clinical HIV research, and conducted the first randomized, controlled trial with combination antiretroviral therapy in Africa.  

Dybul went on to lead President George W. Bush’s International Prevention of Mother and Child HIV initiative for the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). In 2006, he was named U.S. Global AIDS Coordinator.  During that time, he led the implementation of the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), a health initiative he also helped create. Dybul later became the inaugural Global Health Fellow of the George W. Bush Institute.

In 2009, he returned to the Georgetown to serve as co-director of the Global Health Law Program at the O’Neill Institute for National and Global Health Law. He left to serve as executive director of the Global Fund in 2013, a tenure that ended May 31.

Mark has written extensively in scientific and policy literature, and has received several Honorary Degrees and awards, including a Doctor of Science, Honoris Causa, from Georgetown University.

About Georgetown University Medical Center Georgetown University Medical Center (GUMC) is an internationally recognized academic medical center with a three-part mission of research, teaching and patient care (through MedStar Health). GUMC’s mission is carried out with a strong emphasis on public service and a dedication to the Catholic, Jesuit principle of cura personalis -- or "care of the whole person." The Medical Center includes the School of Medicine and the School of Nursing & Health Studies, both nationally ranked; Georgetown Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center, designated as a comprehensive cancer center by the National Cancer Institute; and the Biomedical Graduate Research Organization, which accounts for the majority of externally funded research at GUMC including a Clinical and Translational Science Award from the National Institutes of Health. Connect with GUMC on Facebook (Facebook.com/GUMCUpdate), Twitter (@gumedcenter) and Instagram (@gumedcenter).