Cashman receives the American Public Health Association’s Tom Bruce Award
In recognition of her contributions to the Community-Based Public Health Caucus of the American Public Health Association, Suzanne Cashman, ScD, professor of family medicine & community health, was awarded the 2010 Tom Bruce Award at the association’s annual meeting in November. The award is given annually in celebration of the legacy of Thomas Allen Bruce, MD, a community-based public health pioneer.
Dr. Cashman, who joined UMMS in 1999, has built her 30-year career on the principles of community-based public health. She is director of community health in the Department of Family Medicine & Community Health, co-director of the Rural Health Scholars Program (which she also co-founded) and the Summer Service-Learning Student Assistantships, and principal investigator for the Building on the Promise: Learn and Service UMass grant for the Worcester campus.
“I met Dr. Bruce 20 years ago, when he served as our project officer for the national urban community-oriented primary care demonstration project,” said Cashman. “It is quite an honor to receive an award in his name. The community-based public health caucus has helped the American Public Health Association highlight the importance of developing and supporting partnerships that link community-based organizations, academic institutions, public health and community health agencies, as well as other organizations that advance public health goals in the community. I’m grateful that the caucus provides an opportunity for me to play a role in this meaningful work.”
Cashman was also the 2004 recipient of the School of Medicine’s Educational Achievement Award and, in 2007, she received the Women’s Faculty Outstanding Achievement Award for community service.
