iNDICA NEWS BUREAU-
Dr. George Abraham, a resident of Shrewsbury in Massachusetts, is a Professor of Medicine at the University of Massachusetts Medical School, Chief of Medicine and Emeritus President of the Medical staff at Saint Vincent Hospital, and Adjunct Professor of Medicine at Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Services.
Recently, Dr. Abraham, MD, MPH, FACP, ACP was named President of the 106-year-old American College of Physicians (ACP) for 2021-2022, representing internal medicine physicians (internists), related subspecialists, and medical students.
He is the first Indian American physician to lead one of the nation’s most prestigious medical organizations.
ACP is the largest medical specialty organization in the United States with members in more than 145 countries worldwide.
Its membership includes 161,000 internal medicine physicians and medical students. Internal medicine physicians are specialists who apply scientific knowledge and clinical expertise to the diagnosis, treatment, and compassionate care of adults across the spectrum from health to complex illness.
In taking pride of Dr. Abraham’s new role, the American Association of Physicians of Indian Origin (AAPI), one of the largest ethnic medical associations in the United States, congratulates him for representing the community on the top level.
“It is matter of great pride for all of us that Dr. George Abraham has been elected president of American College of Physicians (ACP) the largest association of American internal medicine physicians with a membership of nearly 170,000 physicians,” said Dr. Anupama Gotimukula, the new President of AAPI.
In fact, several AAPI leaders and past Presidents of AAPI, including Dr. Naresh Parikh and Dr. Narendra Kumar, who hails from the same state of Kerala in India as Dr. Abraham, have expressed their congratulations to Dr. Abraham.
Dr. Abraham earned his medical degree from the Christian Medical College in India and has a Master’s Degree in Public Health from Johns Hopkins School of Public Health. He completed his internal medicine residency and chief residency at Saint Vincent Hospital in Worcester and then earned an MPH in Infectious Disease Epidemiology from the Johns Hopkins School of Public Health.
Earlier, he had served ACP in many capacities including his time on the Board of Governors as Governor of the Massachusetts Chapter, followed by election as Chair of the Board of Governors.
The Board of Governors is an advisory board to the Board of Regents and implements national projects in addition to representing members at the national level. He continued on the Board of Regents where he was elected as President-elect for a one-year term prior to becoming President.
He is Immediate-Past Chair, Infectious Disease Subspecialty Board, American Board of Internal Medicine, and Chair, Board of Registration in Medicine, Commonwealth of Massachusetts.
As the Medical Director of Central MA Independent Physician Association (CMIPA) for 7 years, till 2012, he has worked extensively on health IT, quality management and care coordination issues. Dr. Abraham is a past president of the Worcester District Medical Society.
He also serves as a Trustee of the Massachusetts Medical Society, as the Governor-Elect for the American College of Physicians and as the Immediate Past-Chair of the Board of Directors of the Health Foundation of Central Massachusetts.
Dr. Abraham, who maintains a practice at Saint Vincent Hospital in Worcester, MA, also volunteers at a number of free clinics in the city of Worcester.
“Dr. Abraham has been an integral physician leader at Saint Vincent Hospital for years and his work during the COVID-19 pandemic was invaluable,” said Saint Vincent Hospital CEO Carolyn Jackson.
The growing influence of physicians of Indian heritage is evident, as increasingly physicians of Indian origin hold critical positions in the healthcare, academic, research and administrative positions across the nation.
Serving 1 in every 7 patients in the US, AAPI members care for millions of patients every day, while several of them have risen to hold high flying jobs, shaping the policies and programs and inventions that shape the landscape of healthcare in the US and around the world
