Alexander Fleming Award
The Alexander Fleming Award for Lifetime Achievement recognizes an IDSA member or fellow for a career that reflects major contributions to the acquisition and dissemination of knowledge about infectious diseases.
Alexander Fleming (1881-1955) was a Scottish biologist, pharmacologist and Nobel laureate. He is best known for his serendipitous discovery of the antibiotic substance penicillin, which revolutionized the field of medicine and saved countless lives. Fleming’s groundbreaking research laid the foundation for the development of modern antibiotics, and his work continues to have a profound impact on the field of medicine to this day.
Awardee
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David N. Gilbert, MD, FIDSA
David N. Gilbert, MD, FIDSA, has left a tremendous mark on research, education and clinical practice in infectious diseases. Considered the “father of infectious diseases” in Oregon, Dr. Gilbert’s career has spanned more than 55 years. He was one of the first infectious diseases specialists to emphasize the danger of antibiotic resistance, and his work has improved safety in the use of drugs such as aminoglycosides and improved accuracy in diagnosing and treating respiratory infections.
Dr. Gilbert was the chief of infectious diseases at Providence Portland Medical Center and a professor of medicine at Oregon Health Sciences University. As chief of infectious diseases, he oversaw clinical consultation, diagnostics, the antimicrobial drug formulary and medical student/medical resident infectious diseases training. Dr. Gilbert chaired the Internal Medicine Residency Program at Providence Portland Medical Center for 55 years.
Hundreds of residents, fellows and researchers over several generations were inspired by Dr. Gilbert’s energy, expertise and compassion. He connected with trainees easily and always had time for their questions.
Many improvements to infectious diseases practice and standards were the result of Dr. Gilbert’s leadership. Along with raising awareness of antibiotic resistance, he developed some of the first antimicrobial stewardship programs and, through IDSA, contracted with the Food and Drug Administration to develop the first guideline on the design of clinical trials of new antibiotics. Dr. Gilbert served as a spokesperson about the proper use and accelerated development of antimicrobial agents to professional audiences and FDA, and on Capitol Hill. He served as vice chair of IDSA’s Antimicrobial Agents Committee.
Dr. Gilbert played a leading role in the development and dissemination of the Sanford Guide to Antimicrobial Therapy, one of the most widely used resources for accurate, evidence-based information on managing infectious diseases. He started working with Dr. Jay P. Sanford on the guide in 1969. It now has a worldwide audience and nine editors.
An active participant in IDSA, Dr. Gilbert served in many roles, including president and founder of the Emerging Infections Network. Funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Emerging Infections Network assists CDC and other public health authorities with surveillance for emerging infectious diseases. In Oregon, Dr. Gilbert created a state branch of IDSA, serving as president and officer multiple times.
Dr. Gilbert has published more than 170 articles and was the first or last author on more than 120 of these. Highlights of his research include clarifying the role of the complement cascade in the pathogenesis of septic shock; demonstrating the increased efficacy and decreased toxicity of once-daily aminoglycosides; and identifying the role of multiplex PCR panels and procalcitonin levels in the care of patients with severe community-acquired pneumonia.
The Society is proud to honor Dr. Gilbert with the 2024 Alexander Fleming Award for Lifetime Achievement for his work over more than five decades to advance knowledge in infectious diseases.
Past Alexander Fleming Award winners
2023 Susan Swindells, MBBS
2022 Lawrence Corey, MD, FIDSA
2021 David Relman, MD, FIDSA
2020 James D. Cherry, MD, MSc, FIDSA
2019 Michael Scheld, MD, FIDSA
2018 Richard J. Whitley, MD, FIDSA
2017 Barbara E. Murray, MD, FIDSA
2016 Carol J. Baker, MD, FIDSA, FSHEA, FPIDS, and
P. Frederick Sparling, MD, FIDSA
2015 Anne Gershon, MD, FPIDS, FIDSA
2014 Martin J. Blaser, MD, FIDSA
2013 King K. Holmes, MD, FIDSA
2012 Martin S. Hirsch, MD, FIDSA
2011 Barton F. Haynes, MD, FIDSA
2010 Herbert L. DuPont, MD, FIDSA
2009 Arnold S. Monto, MD, FIDSA
2008 Robert C. Moellering Jr., MD, FIDSA
2007 Sherwood L. Gorbach, MD, FIDSA
2006 Merle A. Sande, MD, FIDSA
2005 John G. Bartlett, MD
2004 Stanley A. Plotkin, MD
2003 Bennett Lorber, MD
2002 Gerald T. Keusch, MD
2001 William A. Craig, MD
2000 Gerald L. Mandell, MD
1999 Anthony S. Fauci, MD
1998 Vincent Andriole, MD
1997 Andre J. Nahmias, MD
1996 Jack S. Remington, MD
1995 Jerome Klein, MD
1994 Paul Quie, MD
1993 Seymour Klebanoff, MD
1992 Sheldon Wolff, MD
1991 Theodore Woodward, MD, MACP
1990 George McCracken Jr., MD
1989 Willy Burgdorfer, PhD, MD
1988 Samuel Katz, MD
1987 Sydney Finegold, MD
1986 Robert Austrian, MD
1985 Elisha Atkins, MD
1984 Morton Swartz, MD
1983 Wesley Spink, MD
1982 Edward Kass, MD, PhD, MS
1981 Jay Sanford, MD
1980 Thomas Weller, MD, MS
1979 Gordon Meikeljohn, MS
1978 Louis Weinstein, MD, PhD
1977 William Kirby, MD
1976 Saul Krugman, MD
1975 Harry Dowling, MD
1974 Lawrence Sherwood, MD
1973 Charles Rammelkamp, MD
1972 Paul Beeson, MD
1971 Colin MacLeod, MD
1970 K.F. Meyer, PhD, DVM
1969 Thomas Francis, MD
1968 John Dingle, MD
1967 Chester Keefer, MD
1966 Maxwell Finland, MD
1965 W. Barry Wood, MD
1964 Ellard Yow, MD