Dr. Timothy Lotze recently received the 2016 Program Director Recognition Award from the American Academy of Neurology (AAN). The award acknowledges excellence on behalf of neurology program directors whose leadership, creativity and innovation are crucial in ensuring the future of neurology.
“This is a huge accomplishment for a pediatric neurologist as our physicians are competing with adult neurology program directors as well,” said Texas Children’s Chief of Neurology Dr. Gary Clark, who nominated Lotze for this distinguished award.
As director of the Pediatric Neurology Residency Training Program at Baylor College of Medicine since 2005, Lotze’s contributions to resident education include expanding the child neurology residency to five approved slots per year and enhancing trainee exposure to clinical research and subspecialties, such as genetics, to help residents understand the roles of modern genetic testing in the discovery and diagnosis of neurological diseases.
In addition, Lotze has developed educational programs that are very forward thinking. For instance, as child neurology training requires education in adult neurology, Lotze established integrated rotations that combine adult and pediatric neurology training in specific areas. These include clinics in neuromuscular disease, movement disorders and multiple sclerosis. Through this type of training, residents better understand the full spectrum of such conditions through the lifespan to include how children transition from a pediatric to an adult care environment with various chronic conditions.
“When I tapped Dr. Lotze to lead our program, I recognized rare qualities in him that would make him invaluable as a program director,” Clark said. “His innovative approach to resident education, his adoption of technology, and his development of educational assessment tools combined with his warm, supportive personality is why I believe he is the best program director in child neurology in the United States.”
In recognition for his teaching and leadership in academic medicine, Lotze has also received two Fulbright and Jaworski LLP Faculty Excellence Awards from Baylor. His tireless dedication to training the next generation of pediatric neurologists has won the appreciation and support from his former trainees.
“Dr. Lotze’s professionalism, dependence on evidence-based medicine and patient compassion and advocacy strongly influenced me during my training,” Dr. Amber Stocco said. “He taught me how to care for a complex patient with an organized, systematic approach while not losing sight of the family and the child.”
Lotze was one of two recipients of the 2016 Program Director Recognition Award. Congratulations to Lotze for this much deserved award.