COLUMBIA, Mo. – Paul Tatum, M.D., medical director for the Compassus program serving Columbia, Missouri, and associate professor in the Department of Family and Community Medicine at the University of Missouri, has been awarded the 2016 Hastings Center Cunniff-Dixon Mid-Career Physician Award.
The Hastings Center Cunniff-Dixon Physician Award honors physicians, young and old, who have shown exemplary care for their patients, a model of good medicine for other physicians, and a great benefit in advancing end-of-life care as a basic part of the doctor-patient relationship. Established in 2009 by the Cunniff-Dixon Foundation and The Hastings Center, the award is given to one senior, one mid-career and three early-career physicians each year.
Tatum received his medical degree from University of Texas Health Science Center and a Master’s of Science in Public Health from the University of Columbia-Missouri. Today, he practices as a primary care physician, hospice physician and an inpatient palliative care consultant in Columbia. He is on the American Academy of Hospice and Palliative Medicine (AAHPM) board of directors, and also serves on several committees, including the National Quality Forum (NQF) Palliative Care and End-of-Life Standing Committee, AAHPM Policy Committee and Geriatrics Special Interest Group, University of Missouri Palliative Care Committee and MU’s Ethics Committee.
“I was very frustrated by the poor care my father received when he was ill and have since been dedicated to improving end-of-life care for all patients,” said Tatum. “I am humbled to be recognized by two organizations that consider end-of-life care as important as the care patients receive during all other phases of life.”
Tatum will be honored at an award ceremony on Friday, June 10.
