Benjy F. Brooks, MD Outstanding Clinical Faculty Award: Akemi Kawaguchi, MD
Akemi Kawaguchi, MD, associate professor in the Department of Pediatric Surgery, is the 2024 winner of the Benjy F. Brooks, MD, Outstanding Clinical Faculty Award.
“I am surprise, elated, and humbled to receive this award,” Kawaguchi said. “I am so proud to know that I have made a difference in someone’s educational journey.”
Established in 1991 by the Alumni Association, the Benjy Brooks Award is presented by the McGovern Student Surgical Association to recognize individuals who “complement and enhance the education program by serving as role models for students.” It is named in honor of Dr. Benjy Brooks, the first board-certified woman pediatric surgeon in the United States, who joined McGovern Medical School’s faculty in 1973 and remained active in the life of the Medical School until her death in 1998.
Medical students may nominate faculty or residents for the award.
Kawaguchi said that she chose a career in pediatric surgery because she loves taking care of children and babies and that she chose academic surgery so she could also be a teacher and mentor to patients, students, residents, and fellows as well.
“Being able to pass on knowledge to others and perhaps inspire them to learn more about surgery is incredibly rewarding,” she said.
In the classroom, Kawaguchi teaches by example and tries to show trainees the joy and wonder of taking care of children and how the human body works.
“We are privileged as surgeons to be able to change the course of someone’s life with surgery, whether it is a small outpatient procedure or a major life-saving surgery,” she said. “From an academic perspective, we can each better the field of surgery and how we care for patients with both clinical and basic science research.”
Kawaguchi received her medical degree in 1999 from the University of California, Los Angeles School of Medicine. She completed her surgery residency at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston in 2006 and pediatric surgery training at Baylor College of Medicine in 2008. In 2015, she completed a master of science in clinical research at the University of Southern California, Keck School of Medicine. She joined the McGovern Medical School faculty in 2014.
Kawaguchi’s research focuses on congenital colorectal surgery, transition of care, parental engagement, patient safety, and surgical quality. She is a surgeon champion for the National Surgical Quality Improvement Program and is the director of the Comprehensive Congenital Colorectal Program for children and adults at UTHealth Houston.
Kawaguchi thanked the students that she has had the privilege of teaching and encouraged them to “keep up the learning, no matter what specialty you choose.”
Additionally, she thanked her parents, her husband, and her children for always supporting her career and her group of pediatric surgery partners.
Former recipients of the Benjy F. Brooks Teaching Award include Walter M. Kirkendall, MD, 1991; William S. Fields, MD, 1992; James T. Willerson, MD, 1994; Harold T. Pruessner, MD, 1995; Herbert L. DuPont, MD, 1997; Larry D. Scott, MD, 1998; Herbert L. Fred, MD, 1999; Becky L. McGraw-Wall, MD, 2000; Terry K. Satterwhite, MD, 2001; Cheves M. Smythe, MD, 2002; Ian Butler, MD, 2003; Francisco Fuentes, MD, 2004; Pedro Mancias, MD, 2009; Lisa Armitige, MD, PhD, 2010; Octavio Pinell, MD, 2011; Kyle Woerner, MD, 2013; Daniel Freet, MD, 2016; Tom C. Nguyen, MD, 2017; Sasha D. Adams, MD, 2018; David R. Hall, MD, 2019; Manish N. Shah, MD, FAANS, 2020; and Allison Speer, MD, FACS, 2021; and Ritha Belizaire, MD, 2022, Thaddeus Puzio, MD, 2023.