As noted in the Galveston Daily News on July 4, Family Medicine’s own Barbara L. Thompson (UTMB class of 1971) was recently honored and received the UTMB Ashbel Smith Distinguished Alumnus Award. The other honorees are Drs. Fred F. Castrow II, class of 1961; Walter F. Hasskarl (posthumously), class of 1942; and Sanford A. Rubin, class of 1966. They were honored on June 5 at the UTMB School of Medicine class of 2010 commencement. “Because of their dedication and passion for their profession, thousands of people are living better lives,” said Dr. Garland D. Anderson, provost and dean of the UTMB School of Medicine.
Dr. Barbara Thompson became Chairman of the Department of Family Medicine in 1998. Dr. Thompson received her B.A. in 1967, from the University of Texas, Austin, and her M.D. from UTMB in 1971. Following an internship at St. Vincent’s Hospital in New York City, she returned to UTMB as a resident in Family Medicine, graduating in 1974. She joined the faculty of the Departments of Family Medicine and Preventive Medicine & Community Health at UTMB in 1974.
During her tenure in Family Medicine, she has served as Director of the Family Medicine Residency Training Program, Director of the Predoctoral Program, and supervised the care of patients at two local nursing homes. She was appointed Interim Chair of the Department in March 1997, and permanent Chair in February 1998. In 2003, Dr. Thompson was named an Osler Faculty Scholar in the John P. McGovern Academy of Oslerian Medicine and served as Chairman of that group from 2006-2008.
Dr. Thompson has been a Diplomat of the American Board of Family Medicine since 1974, with added qualifications (CAQ) in Geriatric Medicine, since 1988. She has served as a member of the American Board of Family Practice Geriatric Test Committee, and as a member of the National Board of Medical Examiners Clinical Skills Committee. She was elected a member-at-large of the Board of the Association of Departments of Family Medicine in 2001, and Council of Academic Society representative of ADFM in 2003. She was elected to the CAS Administrative Board in 2007. Dr. Thompson has held numerous positions in the School of Medicine at UTMB and has served in several administrative roles and committees for the UTMB hospitals. She is President-Elect of the Galveston County Medical Society.