The Department of Surgery is proud to congratulate Dr. Ronald Salem as one of the five recipients of the second annual Yale Medicine Distinguished Clinical Career Award. The award was created by the Yale Medicine Board to “recognize and honor the careers of physicians marked by significant accomplishments, exemplary dedication, and important contributions in advancing Yale Medicine, the overall medical profession, and the community.”
Dr. Salem, a renowned expert in pancreatic and gastrointestinal cancers, has led surgical oncology at Yale since 1996, when he was appointed Division Chief in the Department of Surgery, and Chief of Surgical Oncology at Smilow Cancer Hospital. The division has since grown to include destination sites across the state, more than 17 physicians leading programs in Breast Surgery, Hepato-Pancreato-Biliary Surgery, and Endocrine Surgery.
“Dr. Salem is a master surgeon, educator, and leader; however, his contributions to our community, are greater than the sum of his CV, which cannot justly account for his generosity of time, his calm disposition, his compassion, and his counsel, which continue to influence hundreds of patients and family members; students, trainees, faculty, nurses, and staff — both at Yale, and beyond the institution,” said Department of Surgery Chair, Dr. Nita Ahuja.
Dr. Salem earned his medical degree at the University of Rhodesia and completed a general surgery residency at the Royal Postgraduate Medical School at Hammersmith Hospital in London. He was chief resident and a research fellow at the New England Deaconess Hospital and the Dana Farber Cancer Center in Boston, prior to joining the Yale Faculty in 1989.
Dr. Salem’s many institutional honors and recognitions include the Yale New Haven Hospital Heroes Award, the Smilow Cancer Center Clinical Award, and the Alvin Feinstein Teaching Award. In 2011, Dr. Salem was awarded the prestigious David and Cindy Lefell Award for clinical excellence. He has received the Chief Resident in Surgery Teaching Award on eight separate occasions.
Due to COVID restrictions, a formal award ceremony honoring the YM Distinguished Clinical Career Award recipients, as is tradition, will take place at a future date.