By Lin Lofley

Dr. Carlos Girod

Dr. Carlos E. Girod, Professor of Internal Medicine at UT Southwestern Medical Center, has been named the recipient of the 2015 Patricia and William L. Watson, Jr., M.D. Award for Excellence in Clinical Medicine.

“I am deeply honored and humbled to receive this award,” said Dr. Girod, who also serves as Vice Chair of Clinical Affairs for the Parkland Health & Hospital System. “This is a most prestigious recognition, and I owe an extraordinary amount to UT Southwestern, as well as to mentors who have guided my career. I am proud to join the past recipients, whom I admire as heroes and people I look up to for their excellent patient care and collegiality.”

Dr. Girod noted that he developed his approach to patient care from observing his mentors at UT Southwestern, including Dr. Jonathan Weissler, Internal Medicine Vice Chair of Clinical Affairs, UT Southwestern University Hospitals, and Professor of both Internal Medicine and of Immunology; Dr. David Johnson, Chair of the Department of Internal Medicine; and Dr. Daniel Foster, Professor of Internal Medicine.

In announcing Dr. Girod as the recipient of the Watson Award, Dr. Daniel K. Podolsky, President of UT Southwestern, said: “We congratulate Dr. Girod on receiving one of the highest honors conferred at UT Southwestern. He is highly regarded as an extraordinary clinician, with outstanding people and managerial skills, and unwavering loyalty to his patients. A consummate, caring physician, Dr. Girod has particular clinical interest and expertise in medical intensive care and pulmonary medicine. His research interests include interstitial lung diseases and the role of respiratory bronchiolitis and inhaled organic dust from cigarettes in the occurrence of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.”

Dr. Girod will receive the award this fall in conjunction with the Watson Lecture, which is delivered annually by a national health care leader. Details about the event and the lecture speaker will be announced soon.

A pulmonologist by training, Dr. Girod graduated from the University of Pennsylvania before earning his medical degree from the University of Puerto Rico School of Medicine in San Juan. He completed his internship and residency at UT Southwestern, followed by a clinical fellowship at the University of Colorado School of Medicine, and a research fellowship at the Denver Veterans Administration Medical Center. He was recruited by Dr. Weissler in 1997 and returned to UT Southwestern.

Last year, Dr. Girod became the inaugural holder of the Ron Anderson, M.D. Professorship in Clinical Care and Education at Parkland Memorial Hospital.

Dr. Girod is the son of Dr. Carlos E. Girod-Morales, a famed cardiologist and educator who is a former Dean at the University of Puerto Rico School of Medicine and who still teaches medical students there. The elder Dr. Girod and his wife, a retired college mathematics professor, raised four children, all of whom have careers in health care.

Dr. Girod and his wife of 27 years, Sonia, an elementary school teacher at Wesley Prep, have three children: Sofia, Carlos, and Cristina. Sofia is a third-year medical student at UT Health Science Center at San Antonio, Carlos is a senior at Stanford University studying computer sciences, and Cristina is a junior at UCLA studying world arts and cultures.

“I have attended the Watson Lectures, and it’s humbling to join such a distinguished group,” said Dr. Girod. “Given that the expansion of my administrative duties necessitated some trimming of my clinical duties, I was a little surprised to be recognized in this way.”

Dr. Willis C. Maddrey, Professor of Internal Medicine, Assistant to Dr. Podolsky, and leader of the Watson Award Selection Committee, said, “I consider Dr. Girod to be one of the top five clinicians at UT Southwestern. He richly deserves this recognition.”

The Watson Award was established in 2009 through a generous gift from UT Southwestern alumnus Dr. William Watson and his wife, Patricia, to create an annual opportunity for the campus community to recognize a faculty physician who has had a profound impact on students, trainees, colleagues, and patients through excellence in clinical care. Dr. Watson, who maintained a private practice in Waco until his retirement in 1992, died in January 2012.

Previous Watson Award recipients and the years they were recognized are: Dr. Gary Reed, Chief Quality Officer of UT Southwestern Health System and Associate Dean for Quality, Safety, and Outcomes Education (2009); Dr. Claus Roehrborn, Chairman of Urology (2010); Dr. Duke Samson, Professor Emeritus of Neurological Surgery (2011); Dr. Sharon Reimold, Professor of Internal Medicine (2012); Dr. Barbara Haley, Professor of Internal Medicine (2013); and Dr. Marilynn G. Punaro, Chief of Pediatric Rheumatology and Professor of Pediatrics (2014).

###

• Dr. Foster holds the John Denis McGarry, Ph.D. Distinguished Chair in Diabetes and Metabolic Research.
• Dr. Haley holds the Charles Cameron Sprague, M.D. Chair in Clinical Oncology.
• Dr. Johnson holds the Donald W. Seldin Distinguished Chair in Internal Medicine.
• Dr. Maddrey holds the Adelyn and Edmund M. Hoffman Distinguished Chair in Medical Science, and the Arnold N. and Carol S. Ablon Professorship in Biomedical Science.
• Dr. Podolsky holds the Philip O’Bryan Montgomery, Jr., M.D. Distinguished Presidential Chair in Academic Administration, and the Doris and Bryan Wildenthal Distinguished Chair in Medical Science.
• Dr. Reed holds the S.T. Harris Family Distinguished Chair in Internal Medicine, named in his honor; the Eva A. Rosenthal Professorship in Internal Medicine, also in his honor; and the Sinor/Pritchard (Katy Sinor and Kay Pritchard) Professorship in Medical Education Honoring Donald W. Seldin, M.D.
• Dr. Reimold holds the Gail Griffiths Hill Chair in Cardiology.
• Dr. Roehrborn holds the E.E. Fogelson and Greer Garson Fogelson Distinguished Chair in Urology, and the S.T. Harris Family Chair in Medical Science, in Honor of John D. McConnell, M.D.
• Dr. Weissler holds the James M. Collins Professorship in Biomedical Research.