Norm Beauchamp

Norm has been a leader in his primary position at UW, as Professor and Chair of Radiology since 2002. In that capacity he has led a top Department through a time of dynamic change in the health care sector, maintaining fiscal sustainability, recruiting and retaining a top faculty, and overseeing a leading residency training program (ranked #8 nationally). Norm also served as President of the UW Physicians Practice from 2006 to 2008, reflecting the high esteem in which he is held by his clinical colleagues. His national leadership in the radiology community is also evident. He’s served on dozens of professional society boards, committees, and task forces, including as President of several major radiological sciences groups (Society of Chairmen of Academic Radiology Departments 2012; President, American Roentgen Ray Society, 2013-14). In addition to his leadership and service, he has had a productive scientific career, with over 100 peer-reviewed publications.

At the UW, Norm has been an intellectual leader, modeling technological innovation. In addition to his appointment as Professor and Chair of Radiology, he also holds academic appointments in Neurological Surgery, in Industrial and Systems Engineering, and in the Applied Physics Lab, and has an outstanding track record in cross-disciplinary technology development, focused on his specialty, brain imaging. Norm holds a patent for one imaging technique, and a second is pending.

To say that Norm has been a leader at the University is perhaps an understatement. In addition to serving as Chair of the Department of Radiology since 2002, he currently serves as Chair of the UW Faculty Senate, where he is known for his vision, his commitment to the greater good, and his sense of fair play. Indeed, a look at his CV reveals that he has been on more than 30 different University committees / task forces over the past 5 years. Among the many recent committees he has served on or chaired are Search Committees for: Chair, Radiation Oncology (2011); Dean of Engineering (2013); Chair, Bioengineering (2012-13); Chair, Bioethics & Humanities (2013) and most recently the search committee for UW President (2015). He’s co-chaired numerous committees in the School of Medicine, including UW Medicine Physician Re-entry Task Force, UW Medicine Clinical Telemedicine Task Force, and UW Medicine Wellness Task Force (2011-2014). He’s been involved in the Medical School Curriculum Revision, serves on the CoMotion Council, and Chairs the Global Innovation Exchange (GIX) Advisory Board. Talking with people who have worked with Norm on these committees, it is evident that he does his homework and is always prepared, is passionate about anything he agrees to take on, and is always a pleasure to work with (even if he disagrees with you!). His leadership style is one inspired by confidence, humility and compassion.

Norm has also been a leader in our community beyond the University. One example is his service as Medical Director of the largest free health clinic in our state’s history, at Seattle Center, since its inception in 2014, serving thousands of needy people over several days each year. Another example of community engagement is his active leadership in building collaborative relationships with local industry– he has served on the Board of Directors of the Washington Biomedical and Biotechnology Association (WBBA) since 2010.

Finally, Norm exemplifies a balance of professional and personal dedication. He is a devoted husband and father of two sons. In spite of the huge number of commitments Norm has, his family is always first- i.e., he has his life priorities in order. We have both personally witnessed Norm’s approach to friends and acquaintances who have experienced serious medical challenges – the amount of compassion and sincere caring he exhibits, even to people he barely knows, is remarkable.

In summary, Norm exemplifies exactly the attributes that the Thorud Award is designed to recognize. He is a dedicated and effective leader in the clinical realm, as an educator, across the University, and in our community. With great enthusiasm, and without reservation, we nominate Dr. Norman Beachamp for the Thorud Leadership Award.

Sincerely,

David Eaton
Dean and Vice Provost
The Graduate School

Howard Frumkin
Dean
School of Public Health