Dr. H. Hunter Handsfield Receives Nation’s Highest Award for Lifetime Achievement in STD Control

Dr. H. Hunter Handsfield, a pioneer in sexually transmitted diseases (STD) research, received the Thomas Parran Award during the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's 2010 National STD Prevention Conference in Atlanta, March 8-11. The Thomas Parran Award is the highest award given by the American STD Association and honors persons for their lifetime contributions to STD Control.  During the introduction it was noted that Dr. Handsfield has made numerous contributions to all aspects of STD management and HIV Prevention, which have profoundly shaped approaches to these important personal and public health problems.  

"Over the past 30 years, Dr. Handsfield's contributions to our field have been enormous," said Dr. Edward W. Hook III, a professor of medicine and epidemiology at the University of Alabama, Birmingham, in his nominating letter. "Dr. Handsfield is a proven and influential investigator, an innovator in the provision of health services for persons with and at risk for STDs and an effective mentor who has guided several of us forward in our careers within the field of STDs/HIV prevention."

Dr. Handsfield is a clinical professor of medicine at the University of Washington and  is also a Senior Research Leader at the Battelle Centers for Public Health Research, where his research is focused on worldwide prevention of HIV/STD and especially on prevention of HIV in Zimbabwe. Dr. Handsfield’s work has also established the current standards for routine testing of women for Chlamydia, which is the most common STD caused by bacteria.

"As much or more than anyone in the United States, Hunter's career has really bridged the divide between academic research and the practice of public health," said Dr. Matthew Golden, the current Director of the Seattle/King County HIV/STD Program. "His career is a model for people who want to integrate research with public health prevention."

Everyone at MedHelp congratulates Dr. Handsfield for this well deserved award!   Since 2004 Dr. Handsfield has been answering questions for our members in our STD and HIV Prevention Forums.  MedHelp is honored to have the privilege to work with both Dr. H. Hunter Handsfield and Dr. Ned Hook who was the 2008 recipient of the Thomas Parran Award.

If you have a question for Dr. Handsfield, please visit one of his forums:

HIV Prevention: http://www.medhelp.org/forums/HIV-Prevention/show/117
STDs: http://www.medhelp.org/forums/STDs/show/116

To learn more about Dr. Handsfield, view his MedHelp profile: http://www.medhelp.org/doctor_profiles/show/239123