With over 850 full-time faculty members, the Department of Medicine faculty are not only active clinicians, researchers and educators at the School of Medicine. They are recognized nationally and internationally for their efforts to advance research discoveries and improve human health, here in the St. Louis region and around the world.
National appointments and honors
Please contact Becky Simmons, rsimmons@wustl.edu for any updates to this information.
Dean’s Medals honor six individuals whose impact advances medicine and improves lives (Links to an external site)
Six individuals whose work has transformed patient care, advanced scientific discovery, strengthened medical education and expanded WashU Medicine’s impact around the world have been honored with the 2026 Dean’s Medals. The annual awards recognize extraordinary contributions to WashU Medicine and celebrate leaders whose achievements embody the institution’s interconnected missions of patient care, education and research.
Thomas J. Brett, PhD, & Jennifer Alexander-Brett, MD, PhD, Awarded Michael J. Fox Foundation Grant (Links to an external site)
The Division of Pulmonary & Critical Care Medicine is pleased to congratulate Tom Brett, PhD, and Jennifer Alexander-Brett, MD, PhD, on receiving an award from The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research in support of their project, Investigating and Targeting TREM2 in Cellular PD Assays.
Research.com ranks Diamond among world’s top Microbiology and Immunology scientists for 2026 (Links to an external site)
Michael S. Diamond, MD, PhD, the Herbert S. Gasser Professor in the Departments of Medicine, Molecular Microbiology, and Pathology & Immunology, has been honored with multiple rankings and awards among the world’s top scientists by Research.com, including No. 10 in the world among the Best Scientists for 2026 in Microbiology.
Dr. Will Ross Receives NKF Award of Excellence (Links to an external site)
Congratulations to Will Ross, MD, MPH, Alumni Endowed Professor of Medicine, Nephrology, and Associate Dean for Diversity at Washington University School of Medicine, who was honored with the National Kidney Foundation’s (NKF) Award of Excellence at their 75th Anniversary Heroes Awards celebration on March 5, 2026.
Ignacio Portales-Castillo Awarded OKRA Opportunity Program Grant (Links to an external site)
Ignacio Portales‑Castillo, MD, assistant professor of medicine in the Division of Nephrology, has been selected for funding in the third round of the George M. O’Brien Kidney Resource Alliance (OKRA) Opportunity Pool Program. He will receive $50,000 in research support for his pilot grant proposal, “Reduce Creatine in Proximal Tubule to Enhance Autophagy and Protect from Renal Injury.”
WashU Medicine honors focused excellence with far-reaching impact (Links to an external site)
WashU Medicine’s 2026 Dean’s Impact Awards recognize scientists who probe the most basic elements of life and clinicians who translate those insights into care for patients facing critical health challenges.
2025-2026 Internal Medicine Residency Program Awards
Resident Awards Fellow Teaching Awards Faculty Teaching Awards Awards from Your Chiefs / Colleagues
Zhiyu Dai, PhD, Receives 2026 Werner Risau Early Career Investigator Award in Vascular Biology (Links to an external site)
Congratulations to Zhiyu Dai, PhD, Associate Professor of Medicine, who was selected for the 2026 Werner Risau Early Career Investigator Award in Vascular Biology. This distinguished award was established in honor of Dr. Werner Risau, an investigator who formulated key concepts for the regulation of angiogenesis, challenged the prevailing dogmas about angiogenic factors, and proposed […]