Newswise — New Brunswick, NJ—Dr. P. Ashley Wackym, professor and inaugural chair of Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School’s Department of Otolaryngology–Head and Neck Surgery, has been selected by the Prosper Ménière Society as its next Gold Medal Award recipient. The biennial Gold Medal Award, which has recognized groundbreaking, renowned individuals in the field of neurotology and otolaryngology, is given to a member of the academic community who has furthered the goals of the society through “research excellence, scientific innovation, and far-reaching contributions to the investigation of inner ear disorders.”
“We are proud to have Dr. Wackym leading the medical school’s clinical, research and educational endeavors in otolaryngology,” says Robert L. Johnson, MD, FAAP, interim dean, Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, and dean, Rutgers New Jersey Medical School. “Dr. Wackym has had a life-changing impact on his patients and on our students. This Gold Medal Award reflects the type of leadership and exceptional skills he personifies, and we congratulate him on this great honor.”
“I am truly honored and flattered to have been selected for this award,” says Dr. Wackym, who is also a Chancellor Scholar at Rutgers Biomedical and Health Sciences. “It is humbling to be counted among individuals I hold in great esteem in my field, from my own fellowship mentor, Dr. Brian McCabe, and Dr. Lloyd Minor, the dean of Stanford University School of Medicine, to the man widely considered the ‘Father of Neurotology,’ Dr. William House. It is a privilege to be part of this great community.”
A member of the Robert Wood Johnson Medical School faculty since 2016, Dr. Wackym was the first neurotologist in the world to perform Gamma Knife radiosurgery and is one of the most experienced cochlear implant, superior semicircular canal dehiscence, and skull base tumor surgeons and neurotologists in the United States.
In addition to his clinical expertise, Dr. Wackym has broad research interests in the areas of gravitational receptor test device development and in cognitive dysfunction and recovery following surgical repair of third window syndrome. He has published more than 150 peer-reviewed manuscripts, as well as many other works in the field, including serving as senior editor for Ballenger's Otorhinolaryngology: Head and Neck Surgery, and his research has been supported for more than two decades by the National Institutes of Health and other foundations. He has also served as a senior and neurotology examiner for the American Board of Otolaryngology and on numerous editorial boards of peer-reviewed journals, including Otology & Neurotology, Audiology and Neurotology, Acta Oto-Laryngologica (Stockh), Auris Nasus Larynx, The Journal of International Advanced Otology, and Laryngoscope Investigative Otolaryngology.
Prior to joining Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, Dr. Wackym served for seven years as the vice president of research for Legacy Health in Portland, Oregon, and for more than a decade prior to that as the John C. Koss Professor and Chair of Otolaryngology and Communication Sciences at the Medical College of Wisconsin. A graduate of the Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, he completed his internship, research fellowship and residency training at the UCLA School of Medicine and a clinical fellowship in neurotology and skull base surgery at the University of Iowa.
Dr. Wackym will receive the Gold Medal Award at the Prosper Ménière Society’s 19th International Symposium on Inner Ear Disorders, March 20-28, 2020, in Austria, where he will also serve as keynote speaker and guest of honor at a special roast/toast for the awardee. Founded in 1981, the Prosper Ménière Society aims to promote the academic dissemination and discussion of basic and clinical research data on Ménière disease and all aspects of inner ear dysfunction, pathophysiology, diagnosis and treatment.
About Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School
As one of the nation’s leading comprehensive medical schools, Robert Wood Johnson Medical School is dedicated to the pursuit of excellence in education, research, health care delivery, and the promotion of community health. Part of Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, Robert Wood Johnson Medical School encompasses 20 basic science and clinical departments, and hosts centers and institutes including The Cardiovascular Institute, the Child Health Institute of New Jersey, and the Women’s Health Institute. The medical school has been recognized by U.S. News & World Report as among the top 100 medical schools in the nation for research and primary care.
Robert Wood Johnson Medical School and Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital, an RWJBarnabas Health facility and the medical school’s principal affiliate, comprise one of the nation’s premier academic medical centers. Clinical services are provided by more than 500 faculty physicians in 200+ specialties and subspecialties as part of Rutgers Health, the clinical arm of Rutgers University. Rutgers Health is the most comprehensive academic health care provider in New Jersey, offering a breadth of accessible clinical care throughout the state supported by the latest in medical research and education.
Robert Wood Johnson Medical School maintains educational programs at the undergraduate, graduate and postgraduate levels on its campuses in New Brunswick and Piscataway and provides continuing education courses for health care professionals and community education programs. With more than 5,500 alumni since the start of its first class in 1966, the medical school has expanded its comprehensive programming and educational opportunities and is at the forefront of innovative curriculum development and a visionary admissions program. To learn more about Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, visit rwjms.rutgers.edu.
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