Jantea wins Distinguished Faculty Award in Professionalism
The McGovern Medical School Office of Professionalism has named Rachel Jantea, MD, MS, professor of medicine in the Joan and Stanford Alexander Division of Geriatric and Palliative Medicine, the recipient of the John P. and Kathrine G. McGovern Distinguished Faculty Award in Professionalism Education.
“This award reflects the path I’ve intentionally built throughout my career, and it’s deeply meaningful to have this work recognized by the Office of Professionalism,” Jantea said. “My training in geriatrics and interprofessional education led me to UTHealth Houston, where I saw a unique opportunity to shape how health professionals learn to work in teams.”
Jantea brings a thoughtful, hands-on approach to teaching, shaped by her focus on geriatrics and interprofessional learning. She teaches on geriatrics inpatient and consult services at Memorial Hermann-Texas Medical Center and has developed several interprofessional education activities for undergraduate health profession students. Her work centers on helping learners understand how to work effectively in teams while delivering care that reflects the needs of older adults.
“Through my roles with the Center for Interprofessional Collaboration and the Institute on Aging, I’ve been fortunate to contribute to curriculum development, teach across professions, and support continuing education for providers,” Jantea said.
In both clinical and classroom settings, Jantea prioritizes creating an environment where learners feel comfortable speaking up, asking questions, and learning from mistakes. She uses real patient cases, group discussion, and problem-solving exercises to keep learners engaged and reinforce key concepts. By incorporating patient perspectives and modeling openness about her own learning process, she encourages students to build empathy, recognize gaps in their knowledge, and continue growing throughout their careers.
“What I value most is the opportunity to work directly with learners and faculty while helping shift the culture of health care toward true collaboration,” Jantea said. “I believe strongly that each of our schools graduate exceptional professionals, but no one practices in isolation. Preparing learners to enter the workforce ready to collaborate and lead interprofessional teams is essential to improving patient care.”
The John P. and Kathrine G. McGovern Distinguished Faculty Award in Professionalism Education recognizes faculty who have established one or more successful programs promoting professionalism education for learners in McGovern Medical School undergraduate or graduate programs. Recipients receive $2,500 and are honored at an award ceremony, where they present their contributions.
Examples of professional education programs include, but are not limited to, professional identity formation, faculty development in assessing professionalism, organizational professionalism efforts, resiliency-building initiatives, assessing and remediating professional lapses, interprofessional education, and failing successfully.