Newswise — Bethesda, MD (October 26, 2020) – David A. Greenwald, MD, FACG, a gastroenterologist and the Director of Clinical Gastroenterology and Endoscopy at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York City, was elected by the membership as the 2020–2021 President of the American College of Gastroenterology (ACG), a national medical organization representing more than 15,000 clinical gastroenterologists and other specialists in digestive diseases. Dr. Greenwald officially takes his position as President during the College’s Annual Scientific Meeting and Postgraduate Course, held virtually this week. In this position, Dr. Greenwald will direct ACG’s programs, which include continuing medical education in the clinical, scientific, and patient-related skills of gastroenterology; activities involving national and state medical affairs; health policy issues; and clinical investigation.

In addition to Dr. Greenwald’s role at Mount Sinai Hospital, he serves as a Professor of Medicine at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. Previously, he was Fellowship Program Director in Gastroenterology at Montefiore Medical Center/Albert Einstein College of Medicine for nearly two decades and was an Associate Division Director of the Division of Gastroenterology at Montefiore Medical Center in the Bronx, New York. While there, he was a Medical Director of the Advanced Endoscopy Center. As a clinician and researcher, Dr. Greenwald’s interests in endoscopy include new technology, reprocessing and infection control in endoscopy, training, quality in endoscopy, sedation, patient preparation, GERD, colon cancer screening and prevention, and capsule endoscopy.

Dr. Greenwald graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in biology from Wesleyan University and earned his medical degree from the Albert Einstein College of Medicine. He completed his residency in internal medicine, followed by a fellowship in gastroenterology, at Columbia Presbyterian Medical Center in New York.

Dr. Greenwald has served in leadership roles for the GI Quality Improvement Consortium (GIQuIC), a national quality registry that is a collaboration between ACG and the American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy, including as a Board member and Chair of the GIQuIC Research Committee. He has been a member of the Steering Committee of the National Colorectal Cancer Roundtable (NCCRT) and is now Co-Chair of NCCRT’s Public Outreach Committee. In New York, he is a past president of the New York Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy and currently serves as its Education Director. He is also currently Co-Chair of C5, the Citywide Colorectal Cancer Control Coalition.

As a GI leader and expert in endoscopy, Dr. Greenwald is committed to fostering connections among GI clinicians and encourages ACG members to develop a strong network of support and collegiality. He also champions endoscopic innovation while promoting the safest, most effective practices for clinicians and patients, and has helped to develop standards and guidelines for reprocessing endoscopic equipment and accessories.

“The COVID-19 pandemic no doubt represents the most important challenge in the upcoming year for ACG members, gastroenterologists, physicians and all of society, both here in the United States and globally,” Dr. Greenwald acknowledged. “Moving forward into uncertain territory after an extraordinary and challenging year, my objective is to help ACG members focus on their professional relationships and treasure them. Our physician and other professional colleagues are intelligent, caring, sensitive, and have so much to share,” he added. “We are very lucky to meet so many people through education, training, and through organizations such as ACG all throughout our careers – we have so much to share with each other. Embrace those connections—they are unique—and I‘d like to highlight the importance of those relationships in the coming year.”

About the American College of Gastroenterology

Founded in 1932, the American College of Gastroenterology (ACG) is an organization with an international membership of over 15,000 individuals from 86 countries. The College's vision is to be the pre-eminent professional organization that champions the evolving needs of clinicians in the delivery of high-quality, evidence-based and compassionate health care to gastroenterology patients. The mission of the College is to advance world-class care for patients with gastrointestinal disorders through excellence, innovation and advocacy in the areas of scientific investigation, education, prevention and treatment. www.gi.org

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