Heart surgeon is 2008 Humanity in Medicine Award winner at Reid
E. Paul Howanitz, M.D., Reid Heart Center cardiothoracic surgeon, is the 2008 Paul S. Rhoads Humanity in Medicine award winner at Reid Hospital & Health Care Services.
Dr. Howanitz accepted the award Friday evening during the hospital’s annual medical staff appreciation and new physician reception. The Humanity in Medicine prize honors a career distinguished by compassionate care for patients and their families as well as effective support for the area’s health care community. Nominations for Rhoads awards are solicited in late summer from physicians, patients, health care workers and anyone who resides in the Indiana and Ohio counties served by Reid. An evaluation board selects the physician based on the nominations and service of the physician.
The 2008 winner joined Reid’s medical staff in 2005 when he came to the area from Pennsylvania to lead Reid’s cardiovascular surgery program. He brought 20 years of stellar experience to Reid’s expanded heart services, which were launched in 2003.
“Dr. Howanitz is the consummate professional in all ways,” said Patrick Anderson, M.D. “He is a marvelous physician for patients and a classic physician colleague who is kind and thoughtful, not only for his patients, but his colleagues.”
Dr. Howanitz completed his undergraduate work at Kings College in Wilkes Barre, PA, in 1974. He earned his medical degree in 1978 from Jefferson Medical College in Philadelphia, followed by an residency at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital in Philadelphia. He completed fellowships in vascular surgery in 1984 at the University of Kansas Medical Center and in cardiothoracic surgery in 1986 at The Ohio State University Hospitals.
He is board certified by the American Board of Surgery and the American Board of Thoracic Surgery.
Nominators cited Dr. Howanitz for his knowledge, compassion and honesty. “During my stay, Dr. Howanitz kept my family informed and reassured them at every turn. He exudes confidence and professionalism … the community is extremely fortunate to have a physician of the caliber of Dr. Howanitz,” wrote one nominator.
At Reid, Dr. Howanitz leads a growing heart program that offers complete cardiovascular care. He has performed more than 4,000 surgical procedures and scores among the top in the nation for quality indicators.
“I’m very honored … it is a very complimentary award,” Howanitz said. Dr. Howanitz’s affiliations include the Wayne County and Indiana medical societies. He is a fellow of the American College of Surgeons, the American College of Cardiology and the American College of Chest Physicians. His memberships include the American Heart Association, American Medical Association and the International Society for Heart Transplantation.
Dr. Howanitz, and his wife, Pat, are parents of Paul and Lauren.
In his spare time, Dr. Howanitz enjoys football, snow-skiing and fishing.
The Humanity in Medicine award and celebration, authorized as an annual event by Reid’s governing board in 1983, honors the memory of Paul S. Rhoads, M.D., for his services to patients and medicine.
