Geisinger Commonwealth employees honored with 2019 ‘STAR’ awards

Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine (GCSOM) recognized the outstanding service of two staff members and one faculty member with “STAR” awards. STAR stands for “Service, Teamwork, Accountability, and Resourcefulness.” The awards are presented annually at GCSOM’s Faculty and Staff Recognition Day. At the celebration, employees also received 10-year and five-year service awards.

GCSOM’s 2019 faculty STAR award winner is professor of biochemistry, Patrick M. Boyd, PhD. In addition to the faculty award, two staff STAR awards were given. They went to Kate Powell and Fran Wolk. Ms. Powell was recognized for her work developing and managing GCSOM’s standardized patient program. A standardized patient (SP) is a person trained to portray a real life patient in a standardized, scripted clinical scenario. Ms. Wolk was honored for her work as associate workstation support analyst.

About Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine

Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine (GCSOM) is a member of the Geisinger family. GCSOM offers a community-based model of medical education with campuses in Danville, Lewistown, Scranton, Sayre and Wilkes-Barre. Geisinger Commonwealth offers Doctor of Medicine (MD) and a portfolio of graduate degrees. The school’s innovative curriculum, focused on caring for people in the context of their lives and their community, attracts the next generation of physicians and scientists from within its region, as well as from across the state and the nation. Geisinger Commonwealth is committed to non-discrimination in all employment and educational opportunities. Visit www.geisinger.edu/gcsom.

About Geisinger

Geisinger is among the nation’s leading providers of value-based care, serving 1.2 million people in urban and rural communities across central and northeastern Pennsylvania. Founded in 1915 by philanthropist Abigail Geisinger, the nonprofit system generates more than $8 billion in annual revenues across 163 care sites — including 10 hospital campuses — and Geisinger Health Plan, with more than half a million members in commercial and government plans. Geisinger College of Health Sciences educates more than 5,000 medical professionals annually and is conducting more than 1,400 clinical research studies. With more than 27,000 employees, including 1,800 employed physicians and 5,200 registered nurses, Geisinger is among Pennsylvania’s largest employers, having an estimated economic impact of $16.8 billion on the state’s economy. In 2024, Geisinger joined Risant Health, a nonprofit charitable organization created to expand and accelerate value-based care across the country. Learn more at geisinger.org or follow on Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn.