A Memorable Event
The Investiture of David Baker, MD, as the Michael A. Gertz Professor of Medicine
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David Baker, MD, at his investiture as the Michael A. Gertz Professor of Medicine |
Along with friends and family, faculty members from the Department of Medicine and the Division of General Internal Medicine gathered recently to celebrate the investiture of David Baker, MD, as the Michael A. Gertz Professor of Medicine at the Feinberg School of Medicine. The ceremony was led by J. Larry Jameson, MD, PhD, Lewis Landsberg Dean and Vice President for Medical Affairs, and Dr. Baker was extolled by Mark V. Williams, MD, professor and chief of the recently formed Division of Hospital Medicine.
Dr. Baker joined Northwestern University in 2002, and, in 2006, was awarded the title of professor of medicine. As the Michael A. Gertz Professor of Medicine, Dr. Baker will also continue in his role as chief of the Division of General Internal Medicine. At the ceremony, Dr. Baker acknowledged the honor of the professorship, saying, “To be recognized in this way by the community that I esteem so highly is truly the most memorable event of my career.” He went on to thank his family and fellow faculty members for supporting him and helping his career reach new heights.
After earning his medical degree in 1985 at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), Dr. Baker began his medical career at the Harbor-UCLA Medical Center. He is the author of more than 100 scholarly publications, and has received more than $5 million in research support from the National Institutes of Health, the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, the American Heart Association, and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, as well as other private philanthropic individuals.
The Michael A. Gertz Professorship of Medicine was created in 1981, in memory of a 1926 Northwestern University Medical School alumnus. A fitting tribute, the professorship honors Dr. Gertz and his lifetime practicing general medicine in Ironwood, Michigan.
A major benefactor to Northwestern University, Dr. Gertz bequeathed more than half of his estate to the medical school. His generosity also supports the Nathan S. Davis Professor of Physiology, the Alfred Newton Richards Professor of Pharmacology, the John G. Searle Professor of Molecular Biology and Biochemistry, and the Stephen Walter Ranson Professor of the Department of Cell Biology.