By Lin Lofley

Dr. Shanup Dalal

Dr. Shanup Dalal recently was announced as the winner of the 2016 Iatros Award, the only graduating student award determined by a class vote of fourth-year medical students at UT Southwestern Medical School.

Dr. Dalal, a Texas native from Sugar Land, will soon begin a residency in internal medicine/pediatrics (known as Med/Peds) at UT Southwestern Medical Center, with an eye toward a global medical practice to care for children.

“He is committed to providing care to the underserved in a community setting, with the ultimate goal of providing care to orphans in India,” wrote an unnamed peer in describing why he thought Dr. Dalal was deserving of the Iatros. “He has an incredible heart for the suffering, is among the best academically, and is a visionary.”

“Not only does he go out of his way to take care of and support his peers, but his patients love him. I have seen him go in on his off day to help his patients. I have encountered several similar instances where he exemplified what a physician should be.”

A graduate of UT Austin with a degree in psychology, Dr. Dalal came to the realization that medical school was the place for him during the summer after his sophomore year. Once he arrived at UT Southwestern, he found that he loved virtually all of his clinical rotations, but a few stood out.

“I loved the internal medicine rotation,” he said. “Working at the Veterans Administration hospital and at Parkland were intense learning experiences. They truly made me appreciate the human condition, and how our white coats are immense privileges. That being said, as I went through the pediatrics rotation I quickly realized that the adults I saw at the VA and Parkland started off as children. Something from their childhoods played some role in their disease presentation.”

After his residency, his hope for the future is service in the U.S. and in India.

“I have a real love for the field of International Global Health,” Dr. Dalal said, “and I’d love to go back to India and set up a clinic to treat children.”

He has been to India a few times, and recently spent a month working in a hospital in Hyderabad. While there, his ambitions to become a combined infectious disease doctor for children and adults was reaffirmed. He saw the tremendous tuberculosis burden afflicting underdeveloped countries and he hopes to help treat those patients, while teaching the communities how to care for them.

The Class of 1984 established the Iatros Award in hopes that each subsequent graduating class would select the individual who most emulates the complete qualities of a “physician.” The Class of 1984 called the award the “Iatros” award, using the Greek word for “physician” and specified how each Class would nominate and elect the recipient.

The award carries a cash prize provided by the Alumni Association.

Dr. Dalal said he could think of dozens of his classmates deserving of the Iatros Award, and he professed admiration for them all. He said that all of his classmates have displayed the attributes required to be considered for the award.

“Going to medical school doesn’t happen in a vacuum,” he said. “We all have lives, and there are some who have a tough time, but there were many people in my class who stepped up to see everyone through the hardships of medical school. They deserve this award.”

His UT Southwestern career was marked by participation in United to Serve, the student-run health fair conducted annually at the nearby Thomas J. Rusk Middle School, where he was senior Chair of the United to Serve committee. He also was President of the Texas Medical Association/American Medical Association organization, and a member of both Alpha Omega Alpha and the Gold Humanism Honor Society.

“We could not be prouder of Shanup, and applaud both his commitment to excellence and to compassion and service,” said Dr. Angela Mihalic, Associate Dean for Student Affairs, and Professor of Pediatrics. “He is a wonderful role model, and I am confident he will continue to inspire future physicians as well as his colleagues throughout his career.”