The Detroit City Council bestowed its Spirit of Detroit Award on Oct. 13 to Wayne State University School of Medicine Professor of Emergency Medicine Robert Dunne, M.D., FACEP, in recognition of his work to care for members of the Detroit community during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Dr. Dunne continues to be a key player in Detroit’s response to the pandemic. He directs the prehospital care section for the WSU Department of Emergency Medicine, including Emergency Medical Services, Preparedness, EMS Research and more. He is also program director of the Emergency Medical Services fellowship.

Dr. Dunne is the elected medical director of the Detroit East Medical Control Authority, the local version of the state-designated entity that supervises all pre-hospital care in Detroit and eastern Wayne County. As its chief medical officer, he is responsible for the coordination of the medical response at the TCF Center mass vaccination site in Detroit.

“The pandemic has put many of us in different roles.  Our team has helped to run testing, particularly outreach with our EMS units, vaccinations and special event planning – always part of EMS anyway, but with many new twists.”

Dr. Dunne said he was surprised and grateful to be recognized.