L. Gail Curtis, MPAS, PA-C, is the recipient of the 2013 PA of the Year award from the North Carolina Academy of Physician Assistants.
Curtis was announced as the award winner at the NCAPA’s Summer Conference on August 18 in Myrtle Beach, SC. More than 700 conference attendees were present for the award ceremony, which was conducted by Don Metzger, NCAPA President.
“Gail’s outstanding gifts as a teacher and mentor have helped build the skills and confidence of hundreds of PA students over the years,” Metzger said. “She is an unflagging advocate for our profession on both state and national levels, and a valued member of NCAPA. We are very proud to recognize her as 2013 PA of the Year.”
Curtis is an associate professor in the PA program of Wake Forest School of Medicine. She joined the faculty there in 2004, and has been involved in clinical education of medical and PA students since 1986. She currently serves as Vice Chair, Department of PA Studies, and as Director of Pre-Clinical Education.
Gail has been an integral part in helping to create the practice laws that exist for PAs in North Carolina today. She was part of the 1993 NC Medical Board committee tasked to create the state’s practice rules and regulations.
Gail has been an active member of NCAPA since 1986, and has served the organization in a variety of capacities. She helped develop the NCAPA Health Committee and has been a strong advocate in that group since its inception, committed to ensuring that there are 12-Step meetings and appropriate lectures dealing with impairment issues at NCAPA’s annual conferences. In 1994, as NCAPA President, she helped craft enabling legislation to protect impaired PAs and to allow PAs to enter into agreements with entities such as the North Carolina Physicians Health Program (NC PHP). She currently serves as NCAPA’s liaison to the NC PHP and is a member of their BOD.
Gail also serves as a member of NCAPA’s Professional Development Review Panel, a position she has held since 2009. She was honored with the NCAPA’s 2010 Outstanding Service Award in 2010.
On the national level, Gail has served for more than 20 years in the House of Delegates of the American Academy of Physician Assistants (AAPA). For the past three years she has been a House Officer, and this summer was elected as Speaker of the House and Vice President of the organization. The AAPA named her as a Distinguished Fellow in 2008.
The PA of the Year award honors a physician assistant who has demonstrated exemplary service to the PA profession and the community, and who has furthered the image of the physician assistant profession while providing significant contributions to the health of the citizens of North Carolina. To be eligible for the PA of the Year award, an individual must be a Fellow Member of NCAPA in good standing for a minimum of five years and be licensed by the NC Medical Board.
