OAPA Awards
There are several types of awards provided annually to honor individuals who have made an exemplary impact on the PA profession.
Nominator & Nominee Eligibility:
- A nominator shall be an OAPA member in good standing.
- Nominee need not hold OAPA membership.
- Previous nominees and recipients and Board members are eligible for nomination.
- Members of the Awards and Scholarship Committee are ineligible for nomination during the year(s) in which they serve on the committee.
- Nominee is not required to belong to a health care service profession.
Charles L. Hudson, MD Award
This award is dedicated to the memory of Charles L. Hudson, MD, a Cleveland Clinic Foundation physician who is credited for, in the early 1960's, presenting to the American Medical Association the original paper on the concepts for the utilization of non-physician practitioners in the delivery of primary care medicine. This award honors an individual who has demonstrated exemplary service to the PA profession and the community and has furthered the image of PAs.
Jerry A. Greco, PA-C Memorial PA Educator of the Year Award
Given annually to a person who has demonstrated outstanding commitment to PA education in the state of Ohio, nominees for this award should have provided significant dedication to the provision of PA education.
John Trimbath Award for Exceptional Preceptorship
Since his graduation from the George Washington University PA Program in 1979, John Trimbath helped prepare a path for the next generation of physician assistants by influencing government policy and hospital bylaws that are used in many institutions across the nation. This award expresses appreciation and honors PAs who share John Trimbath’s passion and expertise in precepting PA students.
Philanthropy Award (open for rolling review, no deadline)
OAPA may choose to support a philanthropic project with an award of up to $1,000. The purpose of the project shall be to improve the health of the community. Applications are available upon request to oapa@ohiopa.com and will be reviewed by the OAPA Board of Directors. Up to one project may be selected annually, as budget permits.
Recent Award Winners*
| Charles L. Hudson, MD Award | Jerry A. Greco, PA-C Memorial PA Educator of the Year Award | John Trimbath Award for Exceptional Preceptorship | |
| 2023 | Elizabeth Adamson Former OAPA Executive Director |
not awarded |
Andrea Boyd, PA-C |
| 2022 | Sterling W. Hedrick, MD Columbus Arthritis Center |
not awarded |
**Inaugural Honoree** Shannon Urena, PA-C |
| 2021 | not awarded | Cheryl Geng, PA-C Ohio University |
not applicable |
| 2020 |
Steven Ward, PA-C, NRP |
Jensen Lewis, PA-C Case Western Reserve University |
not applicable |
*See a mistake? We did our best to document recent past winners, but if we overlooked someone, please let us know at oapa@ohiopa.com.
