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Alum Receives AMA Leadership Award
Cited for Work on Behalf of Persons with Developmental Disabilities
From the
March-April 2008 issue of UCHC e-link.
Theodore
A. Kastner, M.D. ’81, M.S., Founder and President of Developmental
Disabilities Health Alliance (DDHA), a New Jersey health care organization
exclusively for individuals with developmental disabilities, has been named
a recipient of the American Medical Association’s (AMA) 2008 Leadership
Award.
The award provides medical students, residents. fellows and physicians from
around the country with special training to develop and enhance their skills
as leaders in organized medicine.
Kastner was among 56 individuals nationwide honored by the AMA Foundation at
its annual Excellence in Medicine Awards ceremony on March 31, in
Washington, D.C. Presented in association with the Pfizer Medical Humanities
Initiative, recipients of the award are recognized for demonstrating
outstanding non-clinical leadership skills in advocacy, community service
and education.
In addition to the training and award recognition, Kastner sees a great
benefit from the honor, by meeting other doctors who may be able to provide
insight into how he can improve his own professional skills.
He says that UConn’s affordability allowed him to pursue the path he’s taken
since graduation.
“I’m grateful for the education I received at UConn, and that my family did
not have to go into debt for me to obtain a medical degree,” Kastner says.
“I obtained my degree at UConn and was still able to afford to go into
primary care, which has led to a long and interesting career.”
Throughout that career, Kastner has focused on a chronically underserved
population: people with developmental disabilities. DDHA began as a single
office in 1997 serving 200 patients; today, it has six offices across New
Jersey providing comprehensive health-care services to more than 3,000
patients and health-care management to 3,400 patients. The organization was
created in 1997 to address the unmet physical and mental health care needs
of people with developmental disabilities. It provides primary care, mental
health services, seizure management, case management, behavioral
consultation, family support and managed-care services.
“Being a leader in a field that is generally underfunded and presents many
challenging clinical problems can be a difficult and frustrating
experience,” says Kastner. “But I have come to believe that being a
physician does not only mean treating the symptoms of my patients. It also
means advocating for systems of care that enhance personal well-being and
quality of life.”
The AMA Foundation, a nonprofit organization, is the philanthropic arm of
the AMA. It seeks to invest in the health of America by supporting a broad
range of programs including scholarships for medical students, grants for
medical research and community service and initiatives for improving the
health of all Americans. The Pfizer Medical Humanities Initiative is a
research and education program committed to understanding and strengthening
the patient-physician relationship.

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