Mary Beth Bolton, MD, Named 'Woman Physician of the Year' by Michigan State Medic...( EAST LANSING Mich. Dec. 11 -- Mary B...),Health

EAST LANSING, Mich., Dec. 11 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Mary Beth Bolton, MD, FACP, a Detroit internal medicine specialist, has been named "Woman Physician of the Year" by the Michigan State Medical Society (MSMS).

Doctor Bolton, Senior Vice President and Chief Medical Officer with Health Alliance Plan (HAP) since 2000, was recognized by her physician peers at MSMS for her career-long commitment to improving primary patient care through increasing access, promoting wellness and reducing racial and ethnic disparities.

"All of health care in Michigan, from primary care to hospice care, is better because of Doctor Bolton's commitment to excellence and her focus on the needs of the individual patient," said MSMS president Michael A. Sandler, MD, a diagnostic radiologist at Henry Ford Hospital who first nominated Doctor Bolton. "Doctor Bolton has served as a teacher, a mentor and an inspiration to countless young physicians and colleagues."

That assessment was echoed by Bruce E. Bradley, Director, Health Care Strategy and Public Policy for General Motors Corporation, another of the dozens of Southeast Michigan health care leaders who endorsed Doctor Bolton's nomination for the award.

"Outstanding value-driven physician leadership is one of the most important factors required to transform our nation's health care system," Bradley said. "Doctor Bolton is a role model."

"Doctor Bolton brings a level of scientific discipline to studying health care issues of populations of patients without ever forgetting that each number represents a human being who deserves compassion, dignity and evidence-based health care," said Dorothy Deremo, president and CEO of Hospice of Michigan, who also endorsed Doctor Bolton's nomination for the award.

Doctor Bolton will receive formal recognition as "Woman Physician of the Year" during the 144th annual meetin
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