Rehman receives Advocate for Internal Medicine Award

Shakaib “Shak” Rehman, MD, CSH, MACP, FACH, FEACH, FAMIA, interim chair and a professor in the Department of Biomedical Informatics in the University of Arizona College of Medicine – Phoenix, was awarded the Richard Neubauer Advocate for Internal Medicine Award from the American College of Physicians.

“The award recognizes individuals who have made exceptional contributions to advocate for patients’ and physicians’ well-being and care. Receiving this award is a recognition of my advocacy efforts both at the federal and state level on behalf of ACP and my patients,” said Rehman, who is also a professor of internal medicine at the College of Medicine – Phoenix.

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Rehman has a long history with ACP, first joining the organization in 1995. He was elected as a fellow in 1999. He was awarded a Mastership in the ACP, their highest honor, in recognition of his leadership in teaching, mentoring, practice and research, in 2022. He has been involved in various roles including as a founding member of the ACP Council of Early Career Physicians and is the current chair of the ACP Arizona Chapter’s Advocacy and Public Policy Committee. He has also received two ACP Laureate Awards, the highest award given by an ACP chapter, from the South Carolina and Arizona chapters.

Rehman is the associate chief of staff for education at the Phoenix VA Health Care System. He joined the College of Medicine – Phoenix and the Phoenix VA Health Care System in 2013. He sees patients in the Academic Patient Aligned Care Team or PACT, which he helped found with the College of Medicine – Phoenix internal medicine residency program. The PACT model provides clinical trainees with learning experience at primary care training sites such as VA medical centers.

“I would like to see the best care delivered to the citizens of Arizona and beyond. My focus and passion are to improve care through better relationships and effective communication utilizing humanistic principles to provide high quality, safe, timely and patient-centric care while preserving the joy and satisfaction of health care workers,” he said.

Rehman said he would like to thank John Buterbaugh, MD, chief of staff, and Sylvia Vela, MD, deputy chief of staff at the Phoenix VA Health Care System; Michael D. Dake, MD, senior vice president for UArizona Health Sciences; and Guy Reed, MD, former dean of the College of Medicine – Phoenix, for their support and guidance throughout his career.

The ACP is a diverse community of internal medicine specialists and subspecialists. Their mission is “to enhance the quality and effectiveness of health care by fostering excellence and professionalism in the practice of medicine.”