A chapter of the Arnold P. Gold Humanism Honor Society, a national organization that honors senior medical students and physician teachers who have demonstrated excellence in both the science and art of medicine, was established last week at the WSU School of Medicine. The first members were inducted at a ceremony at La Dolce Vita Ristorante, in Detroit.

The Gold Humanism Honor Society was founded in the early 1990s by Arnold and Sandra Gold with the idea of re-discovering the tradition of the "caring physician." During the past 15 years, the organization has swept across the country, from the first chapter at the Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, to now more than 80 of the 125 allopathic medical schools in the United States and Canada .

The Gold Humanism Honor Society at the Wayne State University School of Medicine selects the top 10 percent to 15 percent of third- and fourth-year students who have been nominated by their peers for their excellence on the wards, professionalism and humanism. Students undergo a lengthy selection process, which requires faculty recommendations and selection by a panel comprised of faculty, administrators, staff and students. Members are generally known as student leaders, and their skill on the wards is integral to their election, even at this nascent stage in their career in clinical medicine.

The Wayne State chapter of the Gold Humanism Honor Society was founded by students with the help of faculty advisor Ken Kish. The inductees include:

Faculty

Students: Class of 2006

Students: Class of 2007